Rio Tinto has called for Expressions of Interest (EOI) from Western Australian manufacturers to build 100 rail cars for its Pilbara iron ore operations.

The callout follows the miner’s announcement in September that it would look for opportunities for Western Australian suppliers to help grow the local rail car manufacturing industry.

Rio Tinto will initially purchase 50 rail cars from the successful supplier, followed by an ongoing commitment of 10 rail cars per year for the next five years.

“I strongly encourage Western Australian manufacturers to submit an Expression of Interest to build these iron ore rail cars to service our Pilbara operations,” said Simon Trott, Rio Tinto Iron Ore chief executive. Interested manufacturers can submit an EOI at the Rio Tinto Buy Local portal .

“As the local manufacturing industry grows, we will continue to look at ways to engage local businesses to be part of our supply chain.”

Source: Rio Tinto