Rio Tinto slashing contractor jobs at Argyle diamond mine in Australia

Mining giant Rio Tinto has slashed up to 350 contractor jobs from its Argyle diamond mine in Western Australia as it continues its companywide focus on reducing costs, The Australian reported.

The construction of a second underground crusher at the mine, the world's largest producer of pink diamonds, will be delayed as the miner re-orders construction priorities.

"As we reach the final stages of completion of our underground block cave at Argyle, we have decided to delay any construction that is not required to bring the underground mine on stream, says Kim Truter, managing director of Argyle Diamond Mine.

"All our resources will focus on the ramp-up to the first production from the underground block cave, which will commence in a few weeks, followed by official commissioning of the block cave in April."

The contractor jobs are for the building and installation of the second crusher, needed when the underground mine hits its full capacity, the report says.

Rio Tinto has been vocal in its concerns about the high-cost environment of doing business in Australia and has been conducting a company-wide review to cut costs across its operations.

The miner is aiming for global savings of more than $5 billion from operating and support costs by the end of 2014. It is also cutting $1 billion from exploration and evaluation work this year.

Rio Tinto has put its global diamond operations up for sale following a review that found that they did not fit in with its core business. In addition to the fully-owned Argyle mine, it has a 60-percent stake in the Diavik mine in Canada, and owns 78 percent of the Murowa mine in Zimbabwe.