The Oyu Tolgoi concentrator at night
HOUSTON – Rio Tinto is working to maintain steady relationships with Russia to ensure supplies of fuel and other goods for its Mongolian copper operations, a top executive at the mining giant said on Wednesday.
The Anglo-Australian company is developing Mongolia's Oyu Tolgoi, one of the world's largest known copper and gold deposits. Rio controls about two-third of the project, with Ulanbaatar controlling the rest.
Mongolia is bordered on the north by Russia and on the south and east by China, leaving Rio few options to secure supplies for the project, which is set to be the world's third-largest copper mine.
Amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, multiple companies and countries have announced they will stop business in Russia and buying Russian products.
While Rio has begin looking for alternative fuel sources for Oyu Tolgoi, the company does not believe it can stop buying from Russia altogether, Bold Baatar, head of Rio's copper business, said on the sidelines of the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston.
"The reality is, Mongolia has two very big powerful neighbors, so it's quite important for us to maintain healthy, peaceful, balanced relationships," said Baatar.