Date: Apr 10, 2018
Rio Tinto has released information pertaining to its taxes and royalties paid in 2017. The company paid $US5.1 billion ($6.6 billion) in all, with a notable majority of $US3.8 billion going towards Australian taxes.
Due to how Rio’s payment structure is set up, the company expects to pay an additional Australian tax instalment of $US1.2 billion in June 2018 for the 2017 calendar year. Over half of the company’s resources are in Australia.
Other countries where the operator paid significant taxes include Canada at $US387 million, Chile at $US318 million, Mongolia at $US228 million, South Africa at $US93 million, the United Kingdom at $US81 million, United States at $US78 million and Guinea at $US45 million.
Rio’s local taxes and royalties for 2017 are considerably higher than 2016, where the company paid $US1.8 billion in Australia out of a total of $US4 billion. The company’s highest tax payment since it started publicly reporting them in 2010 was its $US7.8 billion payment in 2012.
The company has sometimes received criticism in the media for not paying enough tax (a recent example is a piece published this morning in the Sydney Morning Herald).
