Rio Tinto smelter gets $2.5bn bailout from Australian government

(Sharecast News) - Australia has stepped in with a AUD $2.5bn bailout to keep the country's largest aluminium smelter running. The federal and New South Wales governments agreed a new 10-year power deal that will see the Rio Tinto-controlled Tomago plant shift to 100% renewable power by 2033 in order to stay open amid surging energy costs and plans to shutter the operation.

Rio, which owns Tomago along with Norsk Hydro and Gove Aluminium, said the smelter will invest AUD $1.1bn in upgrades and decarbonisation as part of the arrangements, which follow similar government backing for its Boyne facility in Queensland earlier this year which received AUD $2bn in assistance.

The long‑awaited deal to rescue the Tomago smelter is the latest taxpayer‑funded intervention by the Labor government of Anthony Albanese, following similar bailouts for struggling copper, aluminium, zinc and steel operations.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com