Rio Tinto announced that it had signed an agreement with China’s Baowu Steel Group to set up a joint venture to develop the Western Range iron ore project in Pilbara, Western Australia. The total investment reached US$2 billion.

The iron ore production at the project was expected to be 25 million tons per year, and it can support the Pilbara Blend’s production at Rio Tinto’s Paraburdoo mining center.

The construction was planned to start at the begging of 2023 and be put into operation in 2025.