Rio Tino is on the lookout for opportunities in Canada, the boss of the London-based giants said.

“I wouldn’t mind having lithium production in Canada,” CEO Jakob Stausholm told the Melbourne Mining Club.

Stausholm told media and event attendees that lithium was “a pretty hot market” and that he was “reluctant to come out with too big of a check.” 

Rio Tino  is developing the Rincon lithium project in Argentina and had been looking at a project in Serbia.

The iron ore major is also on the hunt for lithium in the Australian outback, working on JVs and drilling programs.

ASX-listed Everest Metals told investors in July that Rio Tinto Exploration, a subsidiary of Rio, will commence a drilling program to assess reserves at its Rover Project in Western Australia.

The James Bay region of Quebec in Canada has become the hottest mining region in the world recently.

US chemical giant Albemarle took a 10% stake in the Patriot Battery Metals project this week.

The lithium market has seen significant activity in recent months, despite prices for the critical mineral falling this year. 

A number of formally micro-cap miners have managed to emerge as massive players in recent years, including Liontown Resources and Pilbara Minerals in Australia.