RIO

Rio Tinto (RIO), a multinational mining and resources group and Peabody, the largest private-sector coal company in the world has announced that they are going to cut the production of coal as a result of the fall in demand. Peabody has revealed that it will cut the cooking coal production in Australia by 20% and Rio Tinto has said it would cut its output by 6% and workforce by 50%.

Rio Tinto (RIO), the third largest mining company in the world has planned to reduce its net debt by $10 billion over 2009. The company has also planned to reduce the controllable operating costs by $2.5 billion within 2010. These plans aim at preserving value by maintaining cashflow and cutting the level of debt.

What can be termed as one of the biggest achievements, Rio Tinto has bagged a record 86 percent hike in iron ore contract prices. The hike includes freight premium with China's biggest steel maker, Boasteel. Shipping iron ore from China is cheaper than from Brazil. This has led to higher iron ore contract price between Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton against Rio de Janeiro based Vale.

Cazaly Resources share prices soared at the Australian stock exchange after its announcement to team up with Fortescue Metals to mine the iron in Pilbara region in Western Australia. It has obtained the documents for renewal process of the land by Rio Tinto under the Freedom of Information Act. It now claims that there are several defects in the renewal process that leaves the land open for rights to occupancy. However, Rio Tinto has strongly objected to any such allegations.