Rio Tinto releases second quarter 2026 production results

Driving performance to achieve 3% YoY CuEq¹ growth in the first half

MELBOURNE, Australia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Rio Tinto Chief Executive Simon Trott said: "We are delivering growth as we drive performance across the group, with copper equivalent production up 3 per cent in the first half.

“Our scale, geographical diversification and sophisticated supply chains continue to underpin our resilience and strong operational performance despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty throughout the period.

“In the Pilbara, we achieved our highest first half iron ore production since we set a record in 2018, through the successful implementation of our ongoing productivity improvement program. In copper, Oyu Tolgoi continued to ramp up on schedule to deliver more than 30 per cent growth for the first half, while our integrated, large-scale aluminium business sustained its strong performance.

“At Simandou, we continue to advance at pace. SimFer mine construction and port infrastructure are both now more than three quarters complete, with full rail commissioning achieved in the first quarter. We are progressing our next generation of copper growth options at Resolution and Winu, while in lithium we achieved first production ahead of plan at Sal de Vida and Fénix 1B.

“We are driving a step-change in operational performance to deliver industry leading returns and growth for our shareholders."

Executive Summary

• Operational excellence: 3% YoY increase in copper equivalent (CuEq)¹ production for the first half.
• Copper: Oyu Tolgoi ramp-up remains on track; H1 production delivered 31% YoY growth. Copper C1 net unit cost guidance has been reduced to US 30 - 50c/lb (from US 65 - 75c/lb).
• Iron ore: Q2 global iron ore sales were 89Mt, up 5% YoY. Q2 Pilbara sales up 7% YoY. SimFer mine construction and port infrastructure now both over three quarters complete.
• Aluminium: Resilience across the supply chain, with a strong recovery in bauxite.
• Lithium: Production rose 20% YoY in Q2 driven by the ramp-up at Rincon starter plant and delivery of first tonnes at Sal de Vida and Fénix 1B, ahead of plan.

Production and sales²	Quarter 2 2026	vs Q2 2025	vs Q1 2026	H1 2026	vs H1 2025	2026 guidance¹⁰	Guidance status
Copper production (consolidated basis) (kt)	213	-7%	-7%	442	+1%	800-870	Unchanged
Global iron ore production³ (100% basis) (Mt⁹)	87.1	-1%	+5%	169.9	+5%	NA	NA
Pilbara iron ore production (100% basis) (Mt⁹)	83.5	0%	+6%	162.3	+6%	NA	NA
Global iron ore sales⁴ (100% basis) (Mt⁹)	88.8	+5%	+17%	164.5	+4%	343-366	Unchanged
Pilbara iron ore sales⁵ (100% basis) (Mt⁹)	85.3	+7%	+18%	157.7	+5%	323-338	Unchanged
Bauxite production (Mt)	15.2	-3%	+14%	28.5	-7%	58-61	Unchanged
Alumina production⁶ (Mt)	2.0	+10%	-2%	4.0	+8%	7.6-8.0	Unchanged
Aluminium production⁷ (Mt)	0.84	0%	+1%	1.68	0%	3.25-3.45	Unchanged
Lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) production⁸ (kt)	14.6	+20%	+15%	27.3	+53%	61-64	Unchanged
Footnotes
^1 Copper equivalent (CuEq) volume = Rio Tinto’s share of production volume / Volume conversion factor x Product price ($/t) / Copper price ($/t). Prices are based on long-term consensus prices.
^2 Rio Tinto share unless otherwise stated.
^3 Iron Ore production for Pilbara operations and Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC) refers to saleable production (after crushing, screening and beneficiation). For Simandou, it represents ore ready for train loading at the SimFer mine gate: final (tertiary) crushing of Simandou ore takes place in China.
^4 Includes all shipments from Pilbara and IOC, including those to our Portside trading business; excludes shipments from our Portside trading business. It also includes Simandou sales, where there is a ~2-3 month lag between mine gate production and sales for railing, shipping to China and tertiary crushing. 2026 sales guidance (100% basis) is 5-10 Mt for Simandou and 15-18 Mt for IOC.
^5 Pilbara iron ore guidance remains subject to the timing of approvals for planned mining areas and heritage clearances.
^6 QAL production now included on a 100% basis.
^7 Includes primary aluminium only.
^8 H1 2025 represents production since March following completion of the Arcadium acquisition. Q1 2025 LCE production was 5.6kt (6.5kt on a 100% basis); LCE shipments were 3.8kt (5.0kt on a 100% basis).
^9 Wet metric tonnes.
^10 See further notes in Section 2, 2026 guidance.

The full second quarter production results are available here.

This announcement is authorised for release to the market by Matthew Whyte, Rio Tinto’s Group Company Secretary.

UK LEI: 213800YOEO5OQ72G2R82
AU LEI: 529900X2VMAQT2PE0V24

Classification: 3.1 Additional regulated information required to be disclosed under the laws of a Member State

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