Rio Tinto & AWS: Partnering for Sustainable Copper Sourcing

Rio Tinto and Amazon Web Services have entered a strategic collaboration to focus on the sustainable sourcing of critical minerals.

This partnership aims to enhance supply chain resilience for data centres through the use of advanced analytics to redesign mine-to-market value chains.

It demonstrates how significant buyers like AWS could use demand signals and long-term offtake agreements to influence the development of lower-carbon upstream supply options.

The partnership identifies AWS as the inaugural customer for Nuton Technology after the successful industrial-scale deployment of bioleaching technology at the Johnson Camp copper mine in the US.

Under the terms of this two-year agreement, AWS will incorporate Nuton copper into the components of its US data centres.

Simultaneously, AWS will provide cloud-based data and analytics support to assist in the optimisation of the proprietary bioleaching technology at the Gunnison Copper site.

Rio Tinto Chief Executive for Copper, Katie Jackson, says: "This collaboration is a powerful example of how industrial innovation and cloud technology can combine to deliver cleaner and lower-carbon materials at scale."

"Nuton has already proven its ability to rapidly move from idea to industrial production, and AWS's data and analytics expertise will help us to accelerate optimisation and verification across operations."

According to Katie, the integration of this copper into the supply chain could help strengthen domestic resilience.

Katie adds: "Importantly, by bringing Nuton copper into AWS's US data-centre supply chain, we're helping to strengthen domestic resilience and secure the critical materials those facilities need, closer to where they're used."

Monitoring copper recovery with data

Copper serves various functions within a data centre environment.

It is used in electrical cables, busbars, windings for transformers and motors, printed circuit boards and heat sinks for processors.

Nuton will utilise AWS tools to simulate heap-leach performance and integrate advanced analytics into its decision systems.

These digital capabilities could allow the company to optimise the consumption of acid and water while potentially improving predictions for copper recovery.

The modular bioleaching system extracts copper from primary sulphide ores by using naturally occurring microorganisms.

When combined with digital tools, this approach could enable the rapid scaling of the technology to suit different ore bodies.

This potentially reduces the time required to move from the initial concept to full-scale production.

The integration of these systems allows for a more streamlined approach to resource management.

Reducing emissions through industrial innovation

The technical process results in the production of 99.99% pure copper cathode at the mine gate.

This method avoids the requirement for traditional concentrators, smelters and refineries, which could significantly shorten the mine-to-market supply chain.

According to projections by Rio Tinto, Nuton could use substantially less water and produce lower carbon emissions when compared to conventional concentrator processing routes.

The technology also allows for the recovery of value from ore that was previously categorised as waste material.

Amazon Chief Sustainability Officer, Kara Hurst, says: "Amazon's Climate Pledge goal to reach net zero carbon by 2040 requires us to innovate across every part of our operations, including how we source the materials that power our infrastructure."

According to Kara, this collaboration represents a breakthrough in terms of how the company sources materials.

Kara says: "This collaboration with Nuton Technology represents exactly the kind of breakthrough we need – a fundamentally different approach to copper production that helps reduce carbon emissions and water use."

The focus on innovation ensures that the production process remains efficient and environmentally conscious.

Improving supply chain resilience levels

The shift towards lower-carbon materials is part of a broader strategy for Amazon as it continues to expand its digital infrastructure.

Kara says: "As we continue to invest in next-generation carbon-free energy technology and expand our data centre operations, securing access to lower-carbon materials produced close to home strengthens both our supply chain resilience and our ability to decarbonise at scale."

By securing a domestic source of copper through Nuton, AWS could reduce its reliance on international supply chains.

This move highlights how large technology firms are increasingly looking to the mining sector to provide the raw materials necessary for the digital economy.

The integration of advanced analytics from AWS into Rio Tinto's mining operations suggests a more connected future for both the technology and extractive industries.

The use of cloud-based data could mean that mining operations become more efficient and responsive to the needs of specific end-users.

This partnership marks a significant step towards a more sustainable and technologically integrated mining sector.

Both companies remain committed to exploring further opportunities for innovation within the global supply chain.