MELBOURNE--Rio Tinto PLC (RIO) continues to look at ways to exit some of its aluminum assets and its diamonds business and has had interest from potential buyers in individual operations as well as collectively, the mining giant's chief financial officer said Wednesday. Guy Elliott during a conference call said the company has "multiple options," and while it wants to sell the businesses before long, it wouldn't be rushed. Rio Tinto in mid-October put 13 aluminum businesses up for sale, including a bauxite mine, an alumina refinery and several smelters in Australia and New Zealand that it transferred to a new unit called Pacific Aluminum. In March, it said it was looking at options for its diamond operations, mirroring a move under way at rival BHP Billiton (BHP). Mr. Elliott said the company continued to consider a trade sale, spinning off and "public market" options for Pacific Aluminum. The review of the diamonds businesses was well advanced, he added. Write to Robb M. Stewart at robb.stewart@wsj.com Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
