HAMERSLEY IRON MINES

Rio Tinto announced that its subsidiary Hamersley Iron has reached agreement with Japan’s Nippon Steel Corporation on the price for Hamersley iron ore deliveries for the contract year commencing 1 April 2009. Under this agreement, the new prices for Hamersley products will be: Pilbara Blend-US cents 97 per dry metric tonne unit, Yandicoogina Fines-US cents 97 per dry metric tonne unit and Pilbara Blend Lump US cents 112 per dry metric tonne unit.

Long term ore supply contract to Hyundai announced.

Rio Tinto reported that expansion of Hamersley’s Mount Tom Price mine to 28 million tonnes per annum capacity at a cost of US$226m was completed in March 2007. As well brownfields mine expansion of Hamersley’s (Rio Tinto 100%) Yandicoogina mine from 36 million tonnes per annum to 52 million tonnes per annum was completed (US$530m). First ore at Yandicoogina was produced in May 2007, with the project completed at the end of the third quarter of 2007 on time and on budget. Expansion of Hamersley’s Dampier port (Phase B) from 116 million tonnes per annum to 140 million tonnes per annum capacity and additional rolling stock and infrastructure (US$803m) was completed at the end of 2007 on schedule and on budget. Hope Downs development (Rio Tinto share: 50% of mine and 100% of infrastructure). Construction of 22 million tonnes per annum mine and related infrastructure (US$980 million). First production occurred in November 2007, three months ahead of schedule. The first train load took place in December 2007.