REG - Rio Tinto - Rio Tinto & Giampaolo Group aluminium recycling JV

Rio TintoAnnouncement

21/07/2023 17:30

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
http://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20230721:nRSU8600Ga&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 8600G  Rio Tinto PLC  21 July 2023

 

Notice to
ASX/LSE

 

Rio Tinto and Giampaolo Group enter into Matalco aluminium recycling joint
venture

21 July 2023

 

 

Rio Tinto and Giampaolo Group, one of North America's largest fully-integrated
metal management businesses, have entered into an agreement to form a joint
venture to manufacture and market recycled aluminium products. The transaction
reflects the joint venture partners' shared commitment to meeting the
increasing demand for low-carbon aluminium as a key material in the energy
transition.

 

Under the terms of the agreement, Rio Tinto will acquire a 50% equity stake in
Giampaolo Group's wholly-owned Matalco business for $700 million 1  (#_ftn1)
subject to usual closing adjustments.

 

Matalco is a leading producer of high-quality recycled aluminium billet and
slab products. It operates six facilities in the United States and one in
Canada, with the capacity to produce approximately 900,000 tonnes of recycled
aluminium per annum.

 

Giampaolo Group subsidiary Triple M Metal will be responsible for the supply
of recyclable feed to the joint venture with Matalco's leadership team
continuing to manage its operations. Rio Tinto will be responsible for sales
and marketing of Matalco products following a transition period after
completion of the transaction.

 

The joint venture partners will provide oversight to the Matalco management
team on matters such as strategic decisions, including executive appointments,
safety and ESG standards through a board with equal representation.

 

The joint venture will enable Rio Tinto to provide a broader range of
high-quality and low-carbon, primary, recycled, and blended aluminium
products, at a time when customers are looking for solutions to lower their
carbon footprint. The joint venture will also enhance Matalco's current
service offering to a wider array of customers, while securing access for
low-carbon primary metal for its operations. Recycled aluminium is forecast to
account for more than half of United States demand by 2028 2  (#_ftn2) .

 

Rio Tinto Chief Executive Jakob Stausholm said: "Investing in recycling is
part of our drive to find better ways to deliver the low-carbon materials the
world needs and provides a natural extension of our industry leading primary
aluminium business. We look forward to providing customers with aluminium
solutions that meet their needs for low-carbon primary and recycled materials
in partnership with Giampaolo Group a leader in providing recycled material in
North America."

 

Giampaolo Group Inc. CEO Chris Galifi said: "I am delighted to partner with
Rio Tinto, a leader in the global aluminium industry. We have steadily
invested within the recycling supply chain and have grown the Matalco business
over the past 18 years, based on our strategy focussing on a circular economy,
and are extremely proud of the high-quality, low-carbon products we produce.
Giampaolo Group and Rio Tinto have an excellent track record of creating
successful collaborations to unlock value for customers and we look forward to
joining forces to combine our complementary expertise in the recycling value
chain with their experience and track record of innovation in the primary
aluminium industry."

 

The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected
to be completed in the first half of 2024.

 

 

About Rio Tinto Aluminium

 

Rio Tinto is a global leader in aluminium, with a large-scale,
vertically-integrated business: bauxite mines and alumina refineries as well
as smelters producing aluminium certified as responsible. The Matalco joint
venture continues Rio Tinto's investment in building its supply of low carbon
aluminium in North America. Previous investments include $1.1 billion to
expand the use of its AP60 technology at its Arvida aluminium smelter in June
2023, $29 million to establish new recycling capabilities at the Arvida
smelter in August 2022, and $188 million to increase billet production
capability at the Alma smelter in July 2022, all in the
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec.

 

Rio Tinto is also working with the Governments of Canada and Quebec towards a
deployment of the ELYSIS(TM) zero carbon aluminium smelting technology at its
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean facilities. With the current development pathway, the
ELYSIS joint venture between Rio Tinto and Alcoa aims to have its technology
available for installation from 2024 and the production of larger volumes of
carbon-free aluminium approximately two years later.

 

 

About Giampaolo Group and Matalco

 

The Giampaolo Group was founded over 50 years ago in Toronto, Ontario with a
distinct focus in the recycling industry. Since established, the organization
has evolved into a multinational integrated metal corporation. The Giampaolo
Group focuses on harvesting waste within the metal ecosystem by operating
within the recycling, manufacturing, and IT asset disposition space.

 

Established in 2005, Matalco is a leading producer of recycled aluminium
billet and slab. From the initial foray into 6XXX series billet, Matalco
currently produces a variety of 3XXX, 5XXX, 6XXX and 7XXX billet and slab
while offering both direct and tolled products. Headquartered in Brampton,
Ontario, the company has solidified its position as a frontrunner in the
industry. With seven remelting and casting facilities spread across North
America, Matalco employs over 650 skilled professionals and operates an
extensive logistics network to service its customers. Its primary focus is to
supply upstream producers of extruded, forged, and rolled products while
relying on Triple M Metal to supply recyclable raw material to provide a truly
closed loop solution to its customers.

 

LEI: 213800YOEO5OQ72G2R82

 

Contacts

Please direct all enquiries to media.enquiries@riotinto.com

 

 

 

 Media Relations,        Media Relations,               Media Relations,
 United Kingdom          Australia                      Americas

 
 
 

 Matthew Klar            Matt Chambers                  Simon Letendre

 M +44 7796 630 637      M +61 433 525 739              M +1 514 796 4973

 David Outhwaite         Jesse Riseborough              Malika Cherry

 M +44 7787 597 493      M +61 436 653 412              M +1 418 592 7293

                         Alyesha Anderson

                         M +61 434 868 118

 Investor Relations,     Investor Relations,
 United Kingdom          Australia

 
 

 Menno Sanderse          Tom Gallop

 M +44 7825 195 178      M +61 439 353 948

 David Ovington          Amar Jambaa

 M +44 7920 010 978      M +61 472 865 948

 Danielle Smith

 M +44 7788 190 672

 Rio Tinto plc           Rio Tinto Limited

 
 

 6 St James's Square     Level 43, 120 Collins Street

 London SW1Y 4AD         Melbourne 3000

 United Kingdom          Australia

 T +44 20 7781 2000      T +61 3 9283 3333

 Registered in England   Registered in Australia

 No. 719885              ABN 96 004 458 404

This announcement is authorised for release to the market by Steve Allen, Rio
Tinto's Group Company Secretary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

riotinto.com

 

Category: General

 1  (#_ftnref1) All dollar amounts in this press release are stated in US
dollars.

 2  (#_ftnref2) Source: CRU Aluminium Long Term Market Outlook, December 2022.

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  JVEEAKXFAEXDEFA