The Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) share price is rising on Wednesday.
In morning trade, the mining giant's shares are up 1.5% to $113.50.
Why are Rio Tinto shares rising?
There are a couple of reasons why the Rio Tinto share price is rising on Wednesday.
The first is a strong showing from the mining giant's US-listed shares on Wall Street overnight. They rose over 2% along with rival BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP).
Another reason for the rise today could be the release of an announcement this morning.
What has Rio Tinto announced?
Rio Tinto has announced that it will build a first-of-a-kind hydrogen plant in Gladstone with Sumitomo Corporation as part of a $111.1 million program aimed at lowering carbon emissions from the alumina refining process.
The two parties won't be funding the construction alone. The release notes that the Yarwun Hydrogen Calcination Pilot Demonstration Program received the green light after a $32.1 million co-funding boost from the federal government's Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
Rio Tinto notes that the program is aimed at demonstrating the viability of using hydrogen in the calcination process, where hydrated alumina is heated to temperatures of up to 1,000 degrees celsius.
It will involve the construction of a hydrogen plant at the refinery and the retrofit of refinery processing equipment. The company notes that if successful, the program could pave the way for adoption of the technology at scale globally.
Rio Tinto's Aluminium Pacific Operations managing director, Armando Torres, commented:
This pilot plant is an important step in testing whether hydrogen can replace natural gas in Queensland alumina refineries. At Rio Tinto we have put the energy transition at the heart of our business strategy, and this is one of the ways we're working towards decarbonising our operations. "We are proud to be developing this new technology here in Gladstone, in partnership with Sumitomo Corporation, and with support from ARENA.
