[DigitalToday AI Reporter] Amazon has signed a strategic partnership to use low-grade copper for data centre construction.

On Jan. 19, online media outlet Gigazine reported that Amazon will work with miner Rio Tinto to adopt bioleaching technology using microorganisms.

The bioleaching technology was developed by Nuton Technologies, a venture company under Rio Tinto. It extracts copper from ore using oxygen, water and microorganisms. The method can produce copper without a traditional smelter, shortening the supply chain. It can also make low-grade ore economical.

Nuton Technologies plans to produce 14,000 tonnes of copper over four years at a mine in Arizona. Data centres require tens of thousands of tonnes of copper, and copper prices hit record highs as of January 2026 as demand surged. Amazon will become Nuton Technologies' first customer and will provide technical support and analytical capabilities.

Katie Jackson, chief executive of Rio Tinto's copper business, said, "This technology is significant because it not only processes low-grade ore but can also produce with low carbon and low water use." Chris Lowe, Amazon's head of carbon, also stressed that securing copper essential for data centre construction in a low-carbon way is important, adding that the technology will help reduce carbon emissions and water use.