Rio Tinto Digs Deep as Prized $7 Billion Copper Mine Finally Delivers
- Production starts at massive underground facility in Mongolia
- ‘It’s not been a smooth ride,’ says CEO Jakob Stausholm
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Rio Tinto Group has begun digging copper from the underground portion of its giant mine in Mongolia, an expansion that will turn the operation into one of the world’s largest, after years of delays, cost blow-outs and billion-dollar disputes with the country’s government.
The Oyu Tolgoi project is now producing ore from 1.3 kilometers below the surface of the Gobi Desert, Rio’s Chief Executive Officer Jakob Stausholm told reporters gathered at the site. The world’s No. 2 miner is spending $7 billion on the underground project that’s a cornerstone of the company’s growth plans.