Rio Tinto is one of the world’s largest mining companies, operating in 35 countries and employing more than 50,000 people. Today, it is strongly focused on finding better ways to produce the materials the world needs, including reducing its carbon footprint across its operations and creating new products from waste.

Its Winu Project in the Great Sandy Desert promises to deliver a valuable supply of copper, which is used in developing cleaner, renewable energy technologies for a greener world. Copper is the best non-precious conductor of heat and electricity on the planet and is found in everything from electrical wiring in homes to renewable power sources like solar panels and wind turbines.

The Winu deposit was found in 2017 and a project camp set up in 2018 to start exploring development options. Rio Tinto’s plan is to develop a single open-cut mine that will operate for around 30 years and process up to 10 million tonnes of mined rock each year. Around 1,000 people are expected to be employed during the mine’s construction and approximately 400 during operations.

Winu is working closely with Traditional Owners on all aspects of its planning to minimise its impact on Country. The planned operations are located on Nyangumarta traditional lands, while the Karlkayn Airstrip servicing the Winu site, and a potential regional borefield, are located on the traditional lands of Martu.

To proceed with mining, Rio Tinto must first obtain informed consent from Nyangumarta and Martu (through the signing of project agreements), followed by the necessary environmental and regulatory approvals.