- AWS will source copper from Rio Tinto’s Arizona operations to support US data center expansion.
- The Johnson Camp mine restart is tied to Nuton bioleaching, a lower carbon extraction method.
- Only part of the copper will come from Nuton, with the rest produced via conventional leaching.
Amazon Web Services has signed a major agreement with Rio Tinto to secure copper mined in Arizona, a move that highlights just how quickly hyperscale infrastructure is eating through critical materials. The deal is notable for another reason too.
It points to the first new domestic copper supply agreement in the US in more than a decade, arriving at a time when demand is climbing faster than mining output can comfortably match.
Copper is not a “nice to have” for cloud expansion. It is the backbone of power distribution, grounding, transformers, cabling, switchgear, and cooling systems that keep modern data centers alive. This partnership is AWS taking a proactive step, not just reacting to shortages when prices spike.
The copper will come mainly from the Johnson Camp mine, a site that has been restarted and repurposed as a proving ground for Rio Tinto’s Nuton technology. That makes this agreement feel like two strategies rolled into one: securing raw materials while also supporting a newer extraction method designed to reduce environmental impact.
Nuton bioleaching promises cleaner copper but scale remains the real test
Rio Tinto is betting heavily on Nuton, a bioleaching approach that uses naturally occurring microorganisms to extract copper from primary sulfide ores. Instead of relying on the more traditional processing chain, which can involve concentrators, smelters, and refineries, Nuton aims to simplify production by delivering copper cathode directly at the mine site.
That is the headline advantage. Fewer processing stages can mean lower emissions, less water use, and reduced logistical complexity. Rio Tinto says the process can also unlock value from ore that would previously have been written off as waste, improving recovery without the same level of industrial overhead.
AWS plays a role beyond simply buying the metal. The company is providing cloud infrastructure to support simulation and analytics, including modeling heap leach behavior and feeding operational data into decision making systems. In practice, that means using compute to help refine extraction performance and predict outcomes, a familiar playbook for AWS in industrial settings.
Still, the biggest question is not whether the technology works in controlled conditions. It is whether it can scale fast enough to matter. Hyperscale data centers can consume huge volumes of copper in a single build cycle. Even if Nuton proves more efficient and cleaner, it is only part of the answer if output remains limited.
The numbers look strong but they also show the limits
Over the next four years, Rio Tinto expects to produce roughly 14,000 metric tonnes of copper using the Nuton process. When conventional run of mine leaching is included, total delivery under the agreement is expected to approach 30,000 tonnes.
That sounds substantial until you compare it to what a large data center can require. One major facility can consume tens of thousands of tonnes of copper on its own, depending on size, power design, redundancy, and how much on site electrical infrastructure is built out. That comparison is the reality check. This deal is meaningful, but it does not “solve” AWS’s copper problem. It covers a slice of demand, not the full appetite.
There is another nuance here. Only part of the copper supplied under the agreement is tied to Nuton’s lower carbon method. The rest comes through more conventional leaching, which reduces the overall environmental upside of the partnership. In other words, the collaboration is partly a climate story and partly a practical supply story.
That split matters because AWS is positioning the deal as part of its broader push toward decarbonization. The company has committed to reaching net zero carbon by 2040, and materials sourcing is increasingly part of that conversation.
For cloud providers, sustainability is no longer just about renewable energy procurement. It also includes the embodied carbon in the infrastructure itself, from steel and concrete to chips and metals.
Why AWS is moving upstream now
For years, cloud giants have focused on land, power, chips, and cooling as the main constraints on growth. Copper is now joining that list. The AI boom has changed the pace of expansion, and that pace is forcing companies like AWS to think further upstream than they used to.
This agreement gives AWS more than copper. It gives the company a foothold in the domestic mining pipeline at a time when geopolitical risk and logistics bottlenecks are shaping procurement strategies. A closer supply chain can mean more predictable delivery schedules, fewer transport emissions, and reduced exposure to international disruptions.
At the same time, it underscores a broader truth about AI infrastructure. The limiting factor is not always GPUs. It can be the physical materials that carry electricity and connect everything together. Copper is essential, and as long as demand keeps climbing, it will remain a strategic pressure point for hyperscale growth.
AWS and Rio Tinto are framing this as a forward looking partnership. The technology angle is compelling, the sustainability angle is useful, and the supply security angle is arguably the most important. But the scale challenge remains unresolved. This deal is a start, not a finish line.
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