Rio Tinto Restarts Oyu Tolgoi Underground Work as Copper Sentiment Sours
Published on 11/08/2026 at 05:05 | Editorial boerse-global.de
Rio Tinto shares managed a 1.7% gain on Friday even as the copper market slid to its weakest level since July, a split-screen session that put the miner's own operational progress up against a deteriorating demand narrative for its flagship metal.
The price of copper came under pressure from two directions, according to media reports. A selloff in technology stocks fed doubts about copper consumption tied to AI data centres, while the Democrats' success in both chambers of the US Congress tempered expectations for copper tariffs. Demand prospects and trade-policy bets were thus hit at the same time.
Oyu Tolgoi Back in Motion After Seismic Event
At the Mongolian operation, Rio Tinto said on 30 October that underground work at Oyu Tolgoi was resuming in stages following safety inspections. A seismic event on 29 October had triggered a locally contained rockfall in a temporary storage zone. According to the company, the event had no structural impact on the extraction cavity or its operating infrastructure. Two employees were still being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
Reuters also reported that delays at border crossings were limiting the number of trucks available to haul copper concentrate.
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On the production side, Oyu Tolgoi posted third-quarter 2026 copper output that came in 10% above plan on 29 October. The company put taxes, fees and other payments at US$202 million. Rio Tinto and the Mongolian government agreed, according to Oyu Tolgoi, that the company would begin paying dividends from 2027, with the conditions still under discussion.
Argentina Ramp-Up and a Fresh Copper Commitment
Two days before the Oyu Tolgoi update, Rio Tinto formally opened the Fénix 1B expansion and the Sal de Vida operation in Argentina on 29 October. The combined investment in the two projects came to roughly $1.4 billion. Both had already produced for the first time in the second quarter and are now in ramp-up.
Rio Tinto also approved $144 million for the next phase of the Resolution copper project in Arizona, with the company's share of that development programme at $79 million.
Closer to home, the miner, the Rhodes Ridge joint venture and Curtin University announced a joint A$28 million investment in a waterless barrier designed to stop cane toads from reaching Western Australia's Pilbara region. The barrier is to span 7,500 square kilometres.
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Boardroom and Share-Register Housekeeping
On the corporate side, Rio Tinto named Matthew Whyte as an additional company secretary of Rio Tinto Limited on Monday, effective 1 November. Tim Paine continues in the role and remains in office alongside Whyte.
Just over a week earlier, the company reported the issuance of 12,709 ordinary shares under its global employee share plan, with the shares issued between 1 and 31 October to satisfy awards under the programme.
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