Rio Tinto has signed a five-year agreement with Australian bioenergy company SuperChar Ltd. (SCL) to source locally produced bio pellets for its alumina refineries in Central Queensland, marking a significant step in decarbonising its local operations.
The agreement follows successful operational trials and feasibility studies assessing biomass as a cleaner alternative to fossil fuels.
During testing, bio pellet and coal blends demonstrated that biomass could replace up to 30 per cent of the coal traditionally used to generate steam in refinery boilers.
Under the initial offtake deal, Rio Tinto plans to run demonstrations, testing blend ratios ranging from 5 to 50 per cent bio pellets at its Gladstone facilities.
Supply is targeted to begin in 2028, with initial batches slated for the Yarwun refinery before potentially expanding to Queensland Alumina Limited, subject to regulatory approvals and operational readiness.
To fulfill the supply, SCL plans to establish a processing facility in the Gladstone region capable of producing 35,000 tonnes of bio pellets annually.
The facility will use
bana grass, a high-yielding, perennial energy crop well-suited to Central Queensland’s climate, as its primary feedstock. SCL will roll out crop planting from late 2026, leveraging conventional sugar cane machinery to harvest the crop.
At full contract capacity, the shift could trim Rio Tinto’s reported Scope 1 emissions by up to 90,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent each year.
Rio Tinto Aluminium Pacific Operations Managing Director Armando Torres said: “Reducing our alumina refineries’ reliance on fossil fuel will require a mix of technologies, innovation and partnerships, and bio pellets are one of the practical options we are exploring as part of that.
“The recent trials and feasibility study have given us valuable insights, and this agreement allows us to take the next step in understanding how bio-pellets could work in practice and be scaled for use at our Gladstone operations.”
SCL Executive Chairman Michael Palmer welcomed the deal, emphasising that years of collaboration have proven the viability of regeneratively grown biomass as an industrial fuel alternative that creates new economic opportunities for regional communities.