Rio May Restore N.Z. Aluminum Capacity By May

March 13 (Bloomberg) -- Rio Tinto Group, the world’s third-biggest mining company, may restore full capacity at its New Zealand aluminum smelter by May, the plant’s power supplier said. The 350,000 metric ton-a-year plant at Tiwai Point is operating at about 72 percent capacity after a transformer failure on Nov. 9 cut production from one of its potlines. “The indications are Rio will have the potline back on in an April-May timeframe,” Meridian Energy Ltd. Chief Financial Officer Neal Barclay told analysts and journalists in Wellington. “That’s what we’ve been told.” The smelter, 79 percent owned by Rio Tinto Alcan, makes the world’s highest grade aluminum and supplies metal for almost half the hard-drives and capacitors in the world’s computers and LCD screens, according to Rio. It uses a maximum 610 megawatts of electricity annually, and is the country’s biggest energy consumer. Rio executives weren’t immediately available to comment. In February, the company said it was making “good progress” repairing the damaged transformer and preparing a second back-up unit. About 89 percent of Tiwai Point’s power is supplied by Meridian under a contract that requires the venture to pay for the energy whether it is used or not. The two companies are discussing power charging during the shutdown, Barclay said. He wouldn’t comment on whether the smelter may receive a reduction. “We’re providing for the revenue we expect to receive under the contract,” he said. To contact the reporter on this story: Gavin Evans in Wellington at gavinevans@bloomberg.net