Mining giant eyes on copper exploration with Chinese company

Rio Tinto Plc, the world's second-largest producer of iron ore, said on Wednesday it has formed exploration joint venture with Chinalco to make efforts, tapping into the nation's copper market, which relies heavily on imports.

"By forming the venture, we can jointly explore copper deposits in China, because mining and exploration are where our strength is," said Ren Binyan, managing director of Rio Tinto China, without disclosing any more details.

Established in 2011, the joint venture called Chinalco Rio Tinto Exploration JV (CRTX) is now working closely with its Chinese stakeholders on copper exploration in Heilongjiang, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and other areas in China.