Rio Tinto chairman Jan du Plessis has vowed not to expand the company's iron ore division beyond 360 million tonnes per year, and defended plans to build a contentious copper mine in the US. 
Speaking at Rio's Australian meeting of shareholders in Brisbane, Mr du Plessis reassured the meeting that Rio would not oversupply the market that is its biggest money-spinner.
Rio has built rail and port capacity to export 360 million tonnes, and will export between 330 million and 340 million tonnes in 2016.
"We are not yet fully utilising that capacity...we certainly over the next few years plan to fill the capacity," said Mr du Plessis.
'"We have no plans at the moment at all to extend our infrastructure capacity beyond the 360 million tonnes."
Rio was also asked about the Resolution copper project in the US state of Arizona, which has been caught up in the US election campaign.
Democratic Party candidate Bernie Sanders has campaigned against a land deal which gave Rio and its partner in the project BHP access to the land where the mine will be built, with some claiming the land is sacred for indigenous Americans.
Rio's parting chief executive Sam Walsh defended the plan to mine the site, which is one of the world's largest undeveloped copper assets.
"Clearly in that copper triangle there it will create economic benefits for us and also for the community, particularly in areas with the Native American Indians where there is up to 70 per cent unemployment in those communities," he said.
"It is going to be critically important for the local Native Americans for them to have employment in an area where there is no other way."
Mr Walsh said there could be four to six more years of review before the mine is progressed.
Rio is expected to shortly approve an expansion of the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia, and chief executive-elect Jean Sebastien Jacques said the Mongolian government would get more than 50 per cent of the value of the mine despite owning just 34 per cent.
Thursday's meeting in Brisbane was the last as chief executive for Sam Walsh, who will soon hand over to Jean-S&eacute;bastien Jacques in early   July.
It also comes after Rio shares were caught up in a major selldown of resources stocks on Wednesday.
Iron ore prices have fallen by more than five per cent on each of the past two days, and were fetching a relatively strong $US60.09 per tonne on Thursday morning.
Copper was fetching $US2.21 per pound on Thursday.