Mitsui & Co., Ltd. is acquiring a 40% interest in the Rhodes Ridge iron ore project in Australia (RRJV). (Earlier post.) The acquisition is composed of the two transactions stated below, with the total acquisition price for both transactions of US$5,342 million (approximately 800 billion JPY).

• A definitive sale and purchase agreement has been signed to acquire VOC Group Limited’s (VOC) entire 25% interest in the RRJV. The acquisition price is US$3,339 million (approximately 500 billion JPY) including stamp duty. The acquisition is planned to be completed within FY March 2026, after the fulfillment of conditions precedent, including obtaining the necessary approvals from relevant authorities.

• A heads of agreement has been signed with AMB Holdings Pty Ltd (AMB) to acquire a 15% interest in the RRJV. The acquisition price will be US$2,003 million (approximately 300 billion JPY) including stamp duty. Mitsui will proceed with due diligence and negotiations in order to sign a definitive agreement. The completion of the acquisition will be subject to the fulfillment of conditions precedent, including obtaining the necessary approvals from relevant authorities.

Rhodes Ridge is located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia where Mitsui has been involved in iron ore businesses since the 1960s. Rhodes Ridge is one of the world’s largest undeveloped iron ore deposits with 6.8 billion tons of Mineral Resources. Production is expected to start by 2030.

With the acquisition of a total 40% interest, Mitsui’s annual equity share of production from the project is expected to be approximately 16 million tons at the initial production stage and to exceed 40 million tons after further expansion. Mitsui’s annual equity share of iron ore production for FY March 2024 was 61 million tons and the addition of Rhodes Ridge will further strengthen Mitsui’s long-term earnings base.

Rhodes Ridge will be developed and operated by Rio Tinto. Rio Tinto’s 50% interest in the RRJV and the terms of the joint venture arrangements are unchanged. As the existing Robe River iron ore project, in which Mitsui is participating and for which Rio Tinto is also the operator, is geographically close to the project, synergies are expected by utilizing existing infrastructure such as railways and ports, and by blending ores.

Mitsui has defined Industrial Business Solutions as one of its three Key Strategic Initiatives in its Medium-term Management Plan 2026, and has been making efforts to provide solutions for the stable supply of essential resources, materials, infrastructure, etc. Iron ore produced at Rhodes Ridge will be blended into the ore sold by Rio Tinto and planned to be exported to countries in Asia including Japan.