Rio Tinto teams up with Geocycle Canada and Lafarge Canada for circular economy project

Rio Tinto has collaborated with Geocycle Canada and Lafarge Canada for circular economy initiative. The trio will work together to reuse waste from the aluminium smelting process to make cement.

Rio Tinto, Geocycle Canada and Lafarge Canada will reduce the need to extract other raw materials and create value from waste.

Rio Tinto Aluminium Manager, Valorization and Marketing, Stéphane Poirier said: "This partnership shows how Rio Tinto is innovating to find new ways to reuse waste, generating value from our operations and reducing their environmental footprint. We have worked closely with Lafarge Canada and Geocycle Canada over the past two years to develop a product that meets their needs and look forward to building on this partnership."

Lafarge Canada’s subsidiary Geocycle Canada and Rio Tinto have developed a new product called Alextra. Alextra is made from used potlining, as part of the aluminium electrolysis process that would otherwise go to landfill.

“Lafarge Canada will produce on average one million tonnes of cement per year at its facilities in Bath, Ontario, using Alextra as an alternative to raw materials such as alumina and silica, which are commonly refined or mined for use in the manufacturing of cement,” Lafarge Canada said.

All the three companies will expand the delivery of Alextra from Rio Tinto's Potlining Treatment Plant in Saguenay-Lac-St Jean to Lafarge Canada's network of cement plants.

Geocycle Canada senior manager Travis Smith explained: "As a global leader in building materials, we are committed to living up to the responsibility of helping to create a zero waste future. In order to achieve this goal, we need progressive partners such as Rio Tinto, and we look forward to what the future holds as we work to reduce our demand on virgin materials and deliver sustainable products."