Bain advising Iron Ore Company of Canada on restructuring
Strategy consultancy Bain & Company is advising Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC), a Rio Tinto-owned iron ore producer, on an internal restructuring.
The consulting engagement started in early September and is delivering a diagnostic assessment for the restructuring, according to a report from Consultor. A team from Bain’s Toronto office is performing the work.
The publication said the restructuring will focus on strengthening operational resilience and long-term competitiveness.
An IOC spokesperson told Radio-Canada that the restructuring was prompted by increasing internal costs, a more difficult market environment, and issues related the health of the mine site.
Anglo-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto acquired a majority of IOC in 2000. IOC has a mine site at Labrador City in Newfoundland and Labrador and a processing facility at Sept-Iles, Quebec. The two locations are linked by a 400-kilometer private railway.
Rio Tinto tapped Bain for the engagement despite having an internal consulting unit. The unit, named PACE, has a hub in Montreal which is led by general manager Valentin Lavrentyev, a Boston Consulting Group alumnus.
Rio Tinto in August announced a major restructuring amid falling profits, with the project including a consolidation of operations into three divisions: iron ore, copper, and aluminum-lithium.
The reformed iron ore division combines Western Australian operations, IOC, and Guinea’s Simandou project (when it comes online). The division is led by newly appointed chief executive Matthew Holcz.
