Rio Tinto , said on Thursday it will invest $1.8 billion to develop its Brockman Syncline 1 iron ore project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

Iron-ore giant Rio Tinto will invest $1.8 billion to develop a satellite ore-body development in Australia’s mineral-rich Pilbara region.

Rio Tinto has greenlit a $1.8 billion ($2.84b) spend to extend a mine in the West Pilbara amid a cost-cutting drive across the mining giant’s sprawling iron ore network.

The resources giant has flagged the need to commission a mine every year for the remainder of this decade to ensure production and ore quality does not fall.

Australia's Mining and Energy Union said on Thursday it would launch a petition at Rio Tinto's Paraburdoo mine in the Pilbara region that would allow workers to initiate bargaining for a collective agreement for the first time in over 20 years.

Rio Tinto will invest $1.8 billion1 to develop the Brockman Syncline 1 mine project (BS1), extending the life of the Brockman region in the West Pilbara of Western Australia and sustaining production from the company’s world class iron ore operations.

Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX:RIO) is set to invest $1.8 billion to expand its Brockman iron ore operations in Western Australias West Pilbara. The Brockman Syncline extension, expected to begin construction in late 2025,