Rio powers to record export year

Analysis of the mining company’s fourth quarter review shows 61.4 million tonnes (mt) of Rio Tinto iron ore was shipped from Western Australian ports in the final quarter last year, up from 58.2mt in the fourth quarter 2010.

The fourth quarter was the best performer of 2011, with 49.9mt of iron ore being exported in the first, 54.6 million in the second, and 59.5 million tonnes in the third quarter.

The 2011 full year figure of 225.4mt was also a record for Rio.

This was up from 222.7mt in 2010. Rio said its mines, which are in the Pilbara region of WA, operated at above annualised capacity rates, which helped achieve the figures, despite “extreme weather conditions experienced in the first half of the year.”