Rincon Mining, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, has appointed Worley as the lead integration delivery partner (LIDP) for the Rincon full potential lithium project in Salar Del Rincón, Salta Province, Argentina.
This project, with a total investment of $2.5bn, aims to develop a scalable lithium carbonate plant with a production capacity of 60,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) of battery-grade material from raw brine.
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As the LIDP, Worley will oversee the detailed design and execution of the project, coordinating with subcontractors, technology providers and construction contractors.
The services will be provided through Worley’s offices in Argentina, with support from its operations in Chile and Bogota.
The project leverages Worley’s expertise in Argentina’s lithium market and is categorised by the company as sustainable work.
Worley CEO Chris Ashton said: “This outcome builds on our global relationship with Rio Tinto and speaks to our contribution to the project in Argentina to date. This significant expansion in capacity at Rincon underscores our potential as an integral part of the energy transition, and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to sustainability.”
In a separate development, Rio Tinto has completed what is said to be the first trial of renewable diesel at its Pilbara iron ore operations in Western Australia.
The trial, a collaboration with Neste and Viva Energy, involved using ten million litres of renewable diesel produced from used cooking oil.
Blended with fossil diesel, the fuel powered a variety of operations including rail, marine and mining equipment.
The four-week trial, conducted in January and February 2025, provided insights into the integration of renewable diesel and its potential to scale up across Rio Tinto’s Australian operations.
The initiative resulted in a reduction of approximately 27,000 tonnes of direct greenhouse gas emissions.
Rio Tinto is exploring the use of biofuels as part of its strategy to reduce scope 1 and 2 emissions by 50% by 2030 and achieve net zero by 2050.
