Coal & Allied 1QPR

Rio Tinto PLC
16 April 2008


Coal & Allied Media Release



16 April 2008

Production Report for the quarter ended 31 March 2008

                                       CNA        1Q        2Q        3Q        4Q        1Q   12 months
'000 tonnes (100% basis)          interest      2007      2007      2007      2007      2008        2007

Hunter Valley Operations              100%
Thermal coal production                        2,316     2,020     1,883     2,046     2,143       8,264
Semi-soft coking coal                            331       381       460       657       683       1,830
production

Bengalla Mine                          40%
Thermal coal production                        1,315     1,070     1,394     1,376     1,053       5,155

Mount Thorley Operations (a)           80%
Thermal coal production                          657       280       261       731       382       1,929
Semi-soft coking coal                            163       137       393       302       332         995
production

Warkworth Mine (a)                   55.6%
Thermal coal production                        1,343     1,172     1,663     1,197     1,522       5,376
Semi-soft coking coal                             51       216       133         0         1         400
production

Total coal production                          6,177     5,276     6,186     6,310     6,114      23,949

Total sales (b)                                6,671     5,725     6,218     6,908     6,050      25,522

Coal & Allied share
Coal production                                4,605     3,934     4,422     4,746     4,664      17,706
Coal sales ('000 tonnes)                       4,995     4,320     4,531     5,087     4,571      18,933

(a)     Production can be sourced from either mining lease and is allocated over
the year based on the tonnage commitment ratio contractually agreed between the
Mount Thorley and Warkworth joint ventures.

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

Production figures are sometimes more precise than the rounded numbers shown,
hence small differences may result between the total of the quarter figures and
the full year figures.



Production

Constraints in the Hunter Valley coal chain continued to limit coal production.
Total coal produced in the first quarter was one per cent lower than the
corresponding quarter in 2007 and three per cent lower than the fourth quarter
of 2007.



Sales

Coal sales in the first quarter were in line with allocated port capacity.



Other

There was no exploration activity during the quarter.





Media Enquiries:                                    Investor Enquiries:

Alison Smith                                        Dave Skinner
[phone] / 0438 787 038                       03 9283 3628 / 0408 335 309

                            www.coalandallied.com.au


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