Nov 27 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto may need to expand its planned asset sales as it looks to pay down some of its near-$40 billion debt after BHP Billiton scrapped a $66 billion takeover offer.
Rio had pledged to sell $15 billion in assets to reduce the huge debt it took on to buy Canadian aluminium producer Alcan last year, with the first $10 billion of disposals due this year.
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Following are some assets that could be put up for sale.

ALCAN ENGINEERED PRODUCTS:
Alcan's European offices would be most affected by a sale of the division, which includes France-based aerospace operations, and small Canadian assets such as a cable plant near Shawinigan, Quebec, and a bumper plant in the province's Saguenay region.

http://www.alcan.com/web/publishing.nsf/content/Products+Home
ALCAN PACKAGING:
The packaging business, worth more than $5 billion in September, is one of the world's largest producers of flexible food packaging. It is also involved in pharmaceutical, beauty and tobacco packaging. Headquartered in Paris, the group has about 31,000 employees in three dozen countries. It is in the process of being sold off, according to Rio's website.
http://www.alcanpackaging.com

COAL & ALLIED:
Rio has a 75 percent stake in Coal & Allied, which is thought to be worth more than A$8 billion ($5.3 billion), but could fetch more than that with a bid premium. Coal & Allied has three mining operations in the coal-rich Hunter Valley region of New South Wales.
http://www.coalandallied.com.au

NORTHPARKES COPPER MINE:
Rio has 80 percent of a copper and gold mine in central New South Wales. Japanese multinational Sumitomo holds the rest.
http://www.northparkes.com.au

RIO TINTO ENERGY AMERICA (RTEA):
Rio's North American coal unit has an estimated worth of $4 billion and is the second-largest U.S. coal producer by tonnage, with 2006 output of about 125 million tonnes, equivalent to about 6 percent of the fuel used for U.S. power generation. Rio floated the idea of selling the group, which is headquartered in Wyoming, last November, after it bought Alcan.
http://www.kennecottenergy.com

RIO TINTO MINERALS -- TALC AND BORATES:
On Nov. 15, Rio started divesting its market-leading borates and talcs businesses, which are worth an estimated $1.2 billion.
http://www.riotintominerals.com
U.S.-based Rio Tinto Borax supplies nearly half the world's refined borates, minerals used in fibreglass, detergents and ceramics. Borates are the more valuable at around $1 billion.
http://www.borax.com
Sister company Luzenac produces more than a quarter of the world's talc, which is used in paper, paints, plastics, ceramics, rubber, personal care and roofing.
http://www.luzenac.com

* SWEETWATER URANIUM ASSETS:
The Wyoming uranium mill has been mothballed since mid-1983 when uranium prices slumped. Rio put it up for sale in 2005. It selected Toronto-listed Uranium One, which made a $110 million bid, as its preferred bidder, but took the mill off the market early last year. In July 2008, Rio sold its western Australian Kintyre uranium assets for $495 million.
Source: Reuters

(Writing by Gillian Murdoch, Singapore Editorial Reference Unit, Editing by Ian Geoghegan) Keywords: RIOTINTO/DISPOSALS (gill.murdoch@reuters.com, +65 6870 3922, Reuters Messaging gill.murdoch.reuters.com@reuters.net)

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