- Oyu Tolgoi underground expansion could now cost $6.75bn, up from a previous $5.3bn estimate
- Mining expected to begin in 2022, although funding and permitting issues remain
Rio Tinto (RIO) has put a new price tag on the project that will largely define it over the coming years, the Oyu Tolgoi underground copper mine. While its iron ore division has been the source of huge profits of late, as well as a scandal that compelled chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques to resign after a sacred Aboriginal site was destroyed, the company has already committed over $10bn (£7.4bn) into the Mongolian copper project.