Image: Rio Tinto
Rio Tinto said it will invest A$100 million ($72m) to support the Western Australian Government’s building of more than 500 homes for regional frontline workers, as part of its new Seven Cities Vision for regional WA.
The state’s Government Regional Officer Housing (GROH) program will deliver new homes to Karratha, where many Rio Tinto employees live and work, as well as the company’s regional fly-in fly-out hubs of Broome, Geraldton and Albany.
As the biggest private sector contribution to the program, Rio Tinto’s funding will also deliver new homes across the heartland of its Pilbara operations - Wickham, Tom Price, Paraburdoo and Roebourne - providing accommodation for government employees who serve these regional communities.
The Western Australian Government will lead the construction of these new Pilbara homes to meet GROH needs to 2030.
“Rio Tinto has a long and deep connection to regional WA, directly supporting six towns across the Pilbara and, through our fly-in fly-out program, providing employment and economic activity to a further six communities from the Kimberley to the Great Southern," Rio Tinto Iron Ore Chief Executive Matthew Holcz said in a news release.
“Being a good partner to those communities means investing in the things that make them work; the teachers, police and frontline workers who keep them safe and thriving. And for those people to be there, the right housing needs to be in place.
“This $100 million investment does exactly that, delivering more homes in Karratha, Wickham, Tom Price, Paraburdoo and Roebourne and supporting the many people who live and work in these communities.”
“Regional cities like Karratha and Port Hedland have been central to Western Australia becoming the strongest economy in the nation and will be critical to our future economic success," Western Australian Premier Roger Cook said.
“While traditional industries like mining will continue to thrive, Karratha and Port Hedland will be front-and-centre to my government’s vision and becoming a renewable energy powerhouse and making more things here.
“To seize the big job-creating projects in front of us in Karratha and Port Hedland, we need to continue to invest in economic infrastructure and expand their roles as hubs providing quality services to the towns and remote communities within the Pilbara.
“My Seven Cities vision starts with housing and ensuring Karratha and Port Hedland have the frontline workers needed to deliver quality public services."
The investment forms part of Rio Tinto’s A$250 million commitment to the Western Australian Government’s Resources Community Investment Initiative (RCII) and is the second project the company has delivered through the program, following an earlier contribution to the redevelopment of Paraburdoo hospital.