Rio Tinto Alcan to deploy plan to restart suspended production lines at Shawinigan

Rio Tinto Alcan will restart the two suspended lines of production at its 100,000 tonne Shawinigan smelter in Quebec, Canada to bring the plant back to full production. A major power outage on 29 December 2011 forced the closure of two of the plant's four production lines.

The process of gradually restarting the 280 cells that were shut down will begin over the coming days and should be completed in the second quarter of 2012.

"Shawinigan's return to full production is outstanding news for our employees and the community," said Étienne Jacques, chief operating officer, Primary Metal - North America, Rio Tinto Alcan. "We have established a restart plan that secures operations and enables us to fulfil our customers' orders. The collaboration of employee representatives was essential, as the restart plan requires improving operational efficiency and streamlining the organisation. We also appreciate the support from Quebec's Minister of Employment and Social Solidarity, Julie Boulet, during the decision making process, as she helped us understand the significance of this initiative for the region."

"We are proud of the teamwork, determination and ongoing commitment to safety displayed by every one of our employees since last December's power outage," said Rémi Gauthier, general manager of the Shawinigan smelter.

On 29 December 2011, a circuit breaker failed leaving Shawinigan without the power needed to operate at full capacity. As a result of the incident, two of the plant's four production lines were shut down.

Located in Quebec, Canada, the Shawinigan smelter was commissioned in 1941 and employs some 450 people. It uses Söderberg technology, which is to be phased out of all Quebec primary aluminium smelters by 31 December 2014 at the latest, in compliance with Quebec environmental regulations.

About Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto is a leading international mining group headquartered in the UK, combining Rio Tinto plc, a London and NYSE listed company, and Rio Tinto Limited, which is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.

Rio Tinto's business is finding, mining, and processing mineral resources. Major products are aluminium, copper, diamonds, energy (coal and uranium), gold, industrial minerals (borax, titanium dioxide, salt) and iron ore. Activities span the world but are strongly represented in Australia and North America with significant businesses in South America, Asia, Europe and southern Africa.

For further information, please contact:

Rio Tinto Alcan Media Relations
Bryan Tucker
Tel.: +1 514 848 8151
bryan.tucker@riotinto.com

Media Relations, Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean
Claudine Gagnon
Tel.: +1 418 699 4005
claudine.gagnon@riotinto.com