Employee passes away following fatal incident on Roberval-Saguenay railway in Quebec

Rio Tinto Alcan confirms an employee has succumbed to his injuries following an incident on the Roberval-Saguenay railway in Quebec.

Rio Tinto Alcan, the CSST, the Sûreté du Québec, and the ministère des Transports du Québec are conducting investigations to determine the cause of the incident. Rio Tinto Alcan will fully cooperate with the authorities and has suspended operations on the Roberval-Saguenay railway until further notice.

"This is a very sad day for all of Rio Tinto Alcan as there is nothing more important to us than the safety and well-being of our employees. Our deepest sympathies and thoughts are with the employee's family and we will do everything within our power to support them and the employee's co-workers during this difficult time," said Etienne Jacques, chief operating officer, Primary Metal - North America.

About Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto is a leading international mining group headquartered in the UK, combining Rio Tinto plc, a London and NYSE listed company, and Rio Tinto Limited, which is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.

Rio Tinto's business is finding, mining, and processing mineral resources. Major products are aluminium, copper, diamonds, energy (coal and uranium), gold, industrial minerals (borax, titanium dioxide, salt) and iron ore. Activities span the world but are strongly represented in Australia and North America with significant businesses in South America, Asia, Europe and southern Africa.

For further information:

Rio Tinto Alcan Media Relations
Bryan Tucker
Tel.: +1 514 848 8151
bryan.tucker@riotinto.com

Media Relations, Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean
Claudine Gagnon
Tel.: +1 418 699 4005
claudine.gagnon@riotinto.com