In the past year, China has almost become the "second office" of Rio Tinto CEO Shi Daocheng. From Beijing to Shanghai, from Shenzhen to Guizhou, he has left behind his visit. On March 24th, Shi Daocheng returned to Beijing to attend the 2024 Annual Meeting of the China Development Forum. During this period, he was interviewed by media such as Economic Daily. In the interview, Shi Daocheng expressed confidence in the long-term prospects of the Chinese economy.
"I am very excited about what I have seen and heard during this trip to China. Whether it is China's measures to expand opening up and promote green development, or China's development direction to cultivate new quality productive forces, they have shown me a bright prospect and future. Rio Tinto will gain many development opportunities in it." Before the interview began, Shi Daocheng used an opening paragraph to describe the gains of this trip.
The importance of China to Rio Tinto is evident. The largest client of this mining giant is in China, with almost 60% of its revenue coming from China. Therefore, in Shi Daocheng's view, frequent visits to China have allowed him to have a better understanding of China, which is also a necessary aspect of Rio Tinto's development.
"My understanding of China should not only stay in writing, but also be seen and perceived firsthand. Over the past year, I have had the privilege of visiting many parts of China and seeing its rapid development, which has inspired me deeply. In Shenzhen, I visited BYD, which opened my eyes. I also went to Bijie, Guizhou, where the local infrastructure such as highways, bridges, and railways gave me a shock that cannot be felt in books." said Shi Daocheng.
Rio Tinto has gained a lot from its close interaction with China. Over the past year, with the joint efforts of all parties, Rio Tinto has made significant progress in multiple major global projects: the construction work of the Oyutaulagai copper and gold mine project in Mongolia has been basically completed, and the copper concentrate produced is mainly supplied to the Chinese market; The Xipo Iron Mine project located in Western Australia, jointly developed by Rio Tinto Group and Baowu Group, has been approved by the Australian and Chinese governments; The Simandou Iron Mine project, located in Guinea, West Africa, is also progressing smoothly, with the participation of Rio Tinto Group and Chinese companies.
The favorable development trend has made Shi Daocheng more optimistic about the future. Shi Daocheng said, "Rio Tinto is a company that focuses on long-term development, and our perspective on the Chinese economy is also long-term. China is an important driving force for world economic growth, and China is committed to expanding openness and establishing cooperative relationships with global enterprises, which will help all parties achieve win-win results. I see significant growth in the Chinese market, and I believe there will be better development trends this year. In our industry, we have already seen a good start."
Greenization and low carbonization are the development direction of the ore industry and also one of Rio Tinto's main focus points for the future of its business. Shi Daocheng stated that the Chinese market will be an important driving force for Rio Tinto to achieve green and low-carbon development.
"China's current policy direction is very correct. We should not grow for the sake of growth, but rather focus on long-term sustainable and high-quality development. China has the ability to achieve high-quality development goals through various policies. We see that China has taken a series of effective measures to address challenges such as climate change, leading in solar energy, wind energy, power grid construction, new energy vehicles, and other fields." Shi Daocheng said that Rio Tinto is trying to innovate technology and processes to achieve green and low-carbon development. Rio Tinto has many important partners in China, working closely with Tsinghua University and China Baowu to explore more energy-saving and carbon reducing processes in the steel industry.