Australia-based Rio Tinto, the world's second biggest iron ore producer, has announced that in the second quarter of this year its global iron ore production increased by seven percent year on year to 85.26 million mt. In the given quarter, the company's global iron ore shipments amounted to 86.76 million mt, up 6.5 percent year on year.
Rio Tinto's Australian hard coking coal production in the second quarter decreased by 14 percent year on year to 1.79 million mt. The company forecasts production of 7-8 million mt of hard coking coal in the current year.
In the Pilbara region, Rio Tinto’s iron ore production in the given quarter increased by eight percent year on year to 80.9 million mt, due to the minimal weather impacts as well as the successful implementation of operational improvements and the ramp-up of expanded and new mines across the Pilbara region. Meanwhile, Rio Tinto’s iron ore sales in the second quarter amounted to 82.2 million mt, up six percent compared to the same quarter of 2015.