Coal & Allied - 1QPR 2005

Rio Tinto PLC
20 April 2005


Rio Tinto's 75.7 per cent owned subsidiary, Coal & Allied Industries Limited,
issued the following news release in Australia. All dollars are Australian
currency.


Coal & Allied production report for the quarter ended 31 March 2005


                                          1Q     2Q     3Q     4Q         1Q         Full Year
'000 tonnes (100% basis)(a)             2004   2004   2004   2004       2005              2004

Hunter Valley Operations

Thermal coal production                2,255  2,738  2,838  3,340      2,765            11,172
Semi-soft coking coal production         371    729    689    308        570             2,097
Mount Thorley Operations

Thermal coal production                  514    710    722    817        718             2,762
Semi-soft coking coal production         158    240    258    129        268               785

Bengalla Mine

Thermal coal production                1,075  1,525  1,737    975      1,430             5,312
Warkworth Mine

Thermal coal production                1,217  1,394  1,381  1,560      1,380             5,552
Semi-soft coking coal production         237    447    479    239         50             1,403

Total coal production                  5,826  7,784  8,105  7,368      7,181            29,083

Total sales ('000 tonnes)(a)           6,424  7,486  7,931  6,835      7,860            28,677



(a) Sales relate only to coal mined by the operations and exclude traded coal.


Production from all operations exceeded the weather-affected first quarter of
2004.


Semi soft volumes increased as a result of improved access to seams with semi
soft qualities.  At Hunter Valley Operations this was combined with a processing
strategy that focussed on this higher premium product.  Bengalla benefited from
a move into a more favourable section of the mining sequence.  However, with the
completion of the current strip in the second quarter of 2005, Bengalla's
operations will move into a less productive area.


At the end of March, the ship queue at the Port of Newcastle was 17 vessels,
reflecting the success of the capacity allocation system.


No exploration activity was undertaken.


Coal & Allied continued work on the development of the Mount Pleasant deposit
(Coal & Allied 100 per cent.)


For further information, please contact:

LONDON                                               AUSTRALIA

Media Relations                                      Media Relations

Lisa Cullimore                                       Ian Head

Office:  [phone]                        Office:  [phone]

Mobile: [phone]                         Mobile: [phone]
Investor Relations                                   Investor Relations

Nigel Jones                                          Dave Skinner

Office: [phone]                         Office:  [phone]

Mobile: [phone]                          Mobile: [phone]

Richard Brimelow                                     Susie Creswell

Office:  [phone]                        Office:  [phone]

Mobile: [phone]                         Mobile: [phone]


Website: www.riotinto.com


                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange