Rio Tinto to build pilot gallium plant in Quebec
Mining major Rio Tinto is advancing a research and development project to extract gallium from its alumina refining process in Quebec, supported by funding from the Canadian government.
The company will construct a pilot plant at its Complexe Jonquière facility in Saguenay following the successful extraction of its first gallium in partnership with Indium Corporation in May 2025. The pilot facility is expected to begin operating in 2027.
The project has received conditional approval for a non-repayable contribution of up to C$18.95-million from Natural Resources Canada under the Global Partnerships Initiative, in addition to C$7-million committed by the government of Quebec in 2024.
Plans are also under way for a demonstration plant at the same site capable of producing up to 4 t/y of gallium. If the technology is scaled commercially, Rio Tinto estimates production could reach about 40 t/y, representing roughly 5% of global supply.
Gallium is produced in limited quantities globally, with current output of more than 700 t/y, all from outside North America. The metal is used in technologies such as high-performance radar systems, smartphones, electric vehicles and computers.
Rio Tinto Aluminium and Lithium CEO Jérôme Pécresse said extracting gallium from the company’s existing alumina refining process would create additional value while strengthening the North American supply chain for the critical mineral.
Article Enquiry
Email Article
Save Article
Feedback
To advertise email advertising@creamermedia.co.za or click here
Research Reports
Projects
Latest Multimedia
Showroom
Goodwin Submersible Pumps Africa is sole distributors for Goodwin electrically driven, submersible, abrasion resistance slurry pumps.
VISIT SHOWROOM
Stewarts & Lloyds is a leading steel, tube, and engineering product supplier in South Africa.
VISIT SHOWROOM
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
