{"id":12434,"date":"2026-04-20T00:42:04","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T00:42:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/northamericanmining.com\/?p=12434"},"modified":"2026-04-29T20:11:39","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T20:11:39","slug":"rio-tinto-advances-kitimat-operations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/northamericanmining.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/20\/rio-tinto-advances-kitimat-operations\/","title":{"rendered":"Rio Tinto advances Kitimat operations"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo: Rio Tinto<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Rio Tinto has commissioned a new alumina conveyor at its BC Works smelter in Kitimat, British Columbia, Canada, marking a key milestone in its C$135 million investment to strengthen the reliability of its operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 1.1-kilometer system will transport approximately 800,000 tonnes of alumina per year, ensuring a steady supply of the raw material used in aluminum production. Designed with a 50-year operational life, it replaces infrastructure dating back to the 1960s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThis project is a key milestone for Kitimat and a strong signal of our confidence in the future of our operations,\u201d Rio Tinto BC Works General Manager Simon Pascoe said. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe new alumina conveyor strengthens a critical part of our smelter and is built to support reliable performance for decades to come. It is also a testament to the expertise, rigor and commitment of the teams who delivered this complex project safely and successfully.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new conveyor represents a step change in environmental performance for raw material management at BC Works. By using a sealed pipe design, there was a 40% reduction in particulate emissions from containing the transported alumina, reducing the number of transfer points, and using high-efficiency dust collectors. Maintenance and operations are simplified and the alumina recovered is reintroduced into the process, supporting more efficient material handling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rio Tinto has operated in Kitimat for more than 70 years and continues to invest in the long-term future of its aluminum operations in British Columbia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Source: <\/em>Rio Tinto<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rio Tinto has commissioned a new alumina conveyor at its BC Works smelter in Kitimat, British Columbia, Canada, marking a key milestone in its C$135 million investment to strengthen the reliability of its operations. The 1.1-kilometer system will transport approximately 800,000 tonnes of alumina per year, ensuring a steady supply of the raw material used in aluminum production. Designed with…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[495,12],"tags":[4551,4552,4550,182],"coauthors":[1644],"class_list":["post-12434","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-latest-news","category-the-headlines","tag-aluminum-operations","tag-bc-works","tag-dust-collectors","tag-rio-tinto"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t