Iron Ore Mine Development, Production, and Sale

In Australia, we hold a stake in the Roy Hill iron ore mine, which is a highly cost competitive project, as the mine and its associated railway and port facilities are all owned by a single parent company. In addition to further improving the stability and efficiency of operations through remote management and automation of mining trucks, Roy Hill is also actively working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by switching to renewable energy sources. We will contribute to society and the steel industry by ensuring a stable supply of iron ore, the raw material necessary to produce steel, which is expected to see continued demand growth as an essential metal for global economic growth and urbanization.

Steelmaking Coal Mine Development, Production, and Sale

We are advancing our steelmaking coal business with interests in the highly cost competitive Jellinbah East, Lake Vermont, and Hail Creek coal mines in Australia. In June 2025, we increased our stake in Jellinbah Group, which holds interests in the Jellinbah East and Lake Vermont mines, to 40%. We will continue to explore expansion opportunities, including adjacent mining areas, to maintain and enhance cost competitiveness and reinforce our earnings base.

There are several ways to increase supply: Expand current mines, introduce new technology to economically extract copper from lower-grade ore, increase efficiency, recycle or gain approval and build new mines – a task the International Energy Agency says takes 16 years now.

In December 2023, Japanese trading giant Marubeni and London-listed firm Antofagasta took the first route by approving investments to double the copper concentrator capacity at their Minera Centinela mine in northern Chile’s Atacama Desert. The USD 4.4 billion expansion of the mine, which has strong green credentials like using raw seawater, 100% renewables and electric vehicles, will add the equivalent of 170,000 tons of copper annually. It’s expected to start processing in 2027, launching Centinela into one of the leading copper mines in the world by output. Tokyo-based Marubeni owns 30% of Centinela, first investing in two predecessor mines in 2008, and Antofagasta owns the rest.
Iván Arriagada, Antofagasta’s CEO, notes such brownfield projects are easier and faster to build than greenfield ones.

Centinela will need that new capacity.
Arriagada expects copper demand to increase by 6 million metric tons between now and 2030 or 2035, noting that this amount is equivalent to the largest copper producer in the world, Chile at 5.5 million tons annually. (A “quite significant” increase, he says.) And that’s at the conservative end of some estimates. The shortage of projects to increase supply and high demand make him confident.

“Certainly, we are positive about the fundamentals of the copper market mid and long term. And the good thing is most of that – over two-thirds – is associated with the energy transition,” he says. “Its going to be required in all markets globally, in emerging economies as well as developed economies.”
For some of the keys to that transition, for example, solar power and offshore wind turbines, they require two to five times the quantity of copper for each megawatt of installed generating capacity versus conventional thermal sources like natural gas and coal, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence’s 2022 report

Chemical Trading, Distribution, and Marketing

Marubeni is focusing on expanding profits primarily through its domestic (Japan-based) and international operating companies. For olefin trading, Marubeni utilizes its own fleet of specialized olefin tankers to maintain its industry-leading position in Asia and North America. Additionally, Marubeni is expanding its global sales network for the chlor-alkali supply chain, polyolefins (synthetic resins), and specialty chemicals through coordination with major suppliers.