Rio Tinto Minerals WA Grant Scheme 2007

Rio Tinto Minerals buys new school bus for Carnarvon Senior High School

Carnarvon, Western Australia, August 3, 2007 – With the help of Rio Tinto Minerals the students at the Carnarvon Senior High School can now keep up with their busy schedule of activities, camps and community events with the purchase of a new school bus.

Each year the school students are involved in attending numerous educational and employment programs around the Carnarvon community and Gascoyne region, but the high transport costs has taken a hefty toll on school resources.

This year the school decided to apply for assistance through the new Rio Tinto Minerals' $50,000 Community Grant Scheme and their joint submission, in partnership with the Carnarvon Partnerships for Success, was selected the overall winner.

This is the second year that the Rio Tinto Minerals (RTM) Community Grant Scheme has been awarded. The scheme was announced last year by RTM to fund key projects which provide a long-term benefit for the local community.

Vice President of RTM Operations, Asia Pacific, Denise Goldsworthy, congratulated the Carnarvon Senior High School and Partnerships for Success, saying the provision of a new school bus was a significant contribution to assist students in pursuing different learning opportunities.

"The Carnarvon students are involved in so many exciting and interesting community programs outside school that reliable and safe transport is now a necessity," she said.

"One such program is the very successful Partnerships for Success and this new school bus will assist students to be actively involved in more work experience excursions which includes visiting our salt operation at nearby Lake MacLeod."

"Rio Tinto Minerals is very pleased to offer the Community Grant Scheme because we are not only building a stronger foundation for our company, but also striving for a better foundation to assist and support our local communities."

Mrs Goldsworthy said there were a total of 13 submissions for this year's RTM Grant Scheme and the entries were all very high quality community projects.

"It was a difficult job to choose a clear recipient, but in the end the decision was based on the impact and long term benefit that the new school bus would have on the local community," she said.

"The good news is that the RTM Community Grants Scheme is an annual event and I encourage anyone who wasn't successful this year to have another go in 2008."