Rio Tinto Chairman Confident Debt Is Manageable

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Dimanche 22 nov 2009 | 16:02:50

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Rio Tinto Chairman Confident Debt Is Manageable

SYDNEY -(Dow Jones)- Rio Tinto Ltd. (RIO.AU) has $7 billion of untapped facilities and Chairman Paul Skinner sees no need to issue equity in order to pay down a term loan maturing in October of 2009.
Skinner said he is confident that Rio Tinto's debt position is manageable and he expects "significant" asset sales in the near future.
BHP cited concerns about the ability to divest some of Rio's non-core assets in stepping away from the bid.
As for the sharp fall in Rio Tinto's share price since BHP withdrew its bid, Skinner said: "How much of that is just positions being unwound, people long, people short? I think it's going to take a little while to assess the impact."
Skinner also dismissed speculation that Rio Tinto is courting investors to take a stake in the company.
"We didn't solicit the Chinalco investment," he said.
The chairman also said that the company is committed to its progressive dividend policy, which is a financial lever of last resort.
-By Elisabeth Behrmann and Cynthia Koons, Dow Jones Newswires; 61-2-8235-2965; elisabeth.behrmann@dowjones.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 25, 2008 17:54 ET (22:54 GMT)