Mining giant Rio Tinto has signed a five-year offtake agreement with Australian renewable biomass company SuperChar to supply locally produced bio pellets for use at its alumina refineries in Gladstone, Queensland in Australia, with deliveries targeted to begin in 2028.
The agreement follows operational trials and a feasibility study in which bio pellet and coal blends demonstrated that bio pellets could replace up to 30% of the coal used to generate steam in refinery boilers under trial conditions. Under the deal, Rio Tinto will conduct a series of operational demonstrations using bio pellet blends ranging from 5% to 50% as a supplement to coal in boilers at its Gladstone facilities, with initial use planned at the Yarwun refinery before expanding to the Queensland Alumina facility.
SuperChar produces plant-based green charcoal using bana grass, a high-yielding perennial energy crop harvestable with conventional sugar cane equipment, as its primary feedstock. The company plans to establish a production facility in the Gladstone region with initial capacity of 35,000 tonnes of bio pellets per year. At full contract volumes, the arrangement could reduce Rio Tinto's reported Scope 1 emissions by up to 90,000 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent annually.
Armando Torres, managing director of Rio Tinto Aluminium Pacific Operations, said bio pellets were one of several practical options the company was exploring as part of a broader mix of technologies and partnerships needed to reduce its alumina refineries' reliance on fossil fuel.
Michael Palmer, executive chairman of SuperChar, said the agreement demonstrated the potential for locally grown regenerative biomass as an alternative industrial fuel while creating opportunities for regional communities.
Rio Tinto has committed to reducing its operational Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 50% by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2050.
Rio Tinto signs bio pellet supply deal with SuperChar
