PRESS RELEASE: Rio Tinto and Tsinghua University established the Joint Research Centre in 2012 to bring together leading experts from China and around the world to study, generate and share ideas and best practice for sustainable development.

Rio Tinto chief executive J-S Jacques and Tsinghua University president Qiu Yong witnessed the signing of the agreement to extend the partnership at a ceremony on Friday in Beijing. Rio Tinto corporate relations group executive Simone Niven and Tsinghua University vice president Xue Qikun signed the agreement.

Jacques said: “Continuation of the Tsinghua-Rio Tinto Centre further demonstrates our commitment to developing a long-term strategic partnership with China. At Rio Tinto, we strive to add value to the communities in which we operate. As China is attaching increasing importance to the quality of development in the new era, the research projects conducted by the Tsinghua-Rio Tinto Centre will become even more relevant to China’s long-term strategic goals.”

Qikun added: “Based on the past five years of cooperation between Tsinghua University and Rio Tinto, I am confident in and very much looking forward to our future cooperation. Rio Tinto is well-known for its advanced technologies in the energy, mining and materials sectors. As China has entered a new era, we are delighted to be working with leading global companies like Rio Tinto to promote the development of our university, to share and implement our research results, and most importantly, to make contributions to the development of China and the world. The extension of our partnership represents a new level, as well as a new era of our win-win cooperation.”