Rio Tinto’s annual profit unchanged amid falling iron ore prices

Mining company Rio Tinto reported basic annual earnings for 2025 of $10.87 billion, unchanged from the previous year, Reuters reports.

The company’s core iron ore business suffered from lower prices for this raw material, which was offset by strong performance in its copper division.

Rio Tinto’s iron ore earnings last year fell to about 60% of the group’s total, compared with 70% a year ago. The figure was affected by higher unit costs for mining Pilbara raw materials in Western Australia, which were approximately $0.50 per ton higher than in 2024 due to inflationary pressures and weather disruptions. These costs are projected to rise to $23.5–25 per tonne in the current year.

Among the key milestones for project implementation in 2025, the company cites, among other things, the shipment of the first batch of high-quality iron ore from the Simandou deposit in Guinea, the timely and on-budget opening of the Western Range reserve mine, and the start of construction of three more Pilbara iron ore mines on abandoned industrial sites.

According to the company’s report, total iron ore sales last year amounted to 342 million tons, with a forecast for the current year of 343-366 million tons, and 5-10 million tons for Simandou.

It should be noted that Rio Tinto’s ore production in Western Australia in 2025 amounted to 327.3 million tons, which is in line with the 2024 level.