But that makes them all the more willing to accept the compensation which Chinalco is offering.
National treasurer Wayne Swan approved the purchase on condition state-owned Chinalco did not buy more Rio shares.
On the other hand, a second Chinese mining company operating in Peru, state-owned Chinalco, has so far behaved differently.
CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Questionable Chinese mining practices in Latin America
Now Mr Albanese is turning to Chinalco to help him with those, too.
"I have determined that the undertakings agreed with Chinalco are acceptable for protecting the national interest in this matter, " he added.
If so, it seems that Chinalco, after losing heavily on its first investment in Rio, has struck a better deal this time.
Rio Tinto and Chinalco have had a mixed relationship in the past.
In 2009 Rio Tinto, an Anglo-Australian mining firm, withdrew from a deal to sell a series of minority stakes to Chinalco, a Chinese metals firm.
ECONOMIST: What it feels like to be bought by a Chinese firm
Others felt that Chinalco was getting much too good a bargain.
Rio was seeking to shore up its finances (and fend off any future bids) by bringing in Chinalco, a state-owned Chinese firm, as a big shareholder.
The joint venture is subject to Chinese regulatory approvals and on approval the venture will carry out operations under the name Chinalco Rio Tinto Exploration Co.
Chinalco took its original stake in the hopes of blocking a merger that China feared would hand too much control of iron ore prices to one company.
ECONOMIST: China and Rio Tinto: A souring relationship | The
Rio Tinto announced deals with its partners in China , including the creation of a joint venture with Chinalco to seek new sources of copper and coking coal.
Mr Albanese championed a deal in which Chinalco would double its stake in Rio to 18% and buy shares in some prize assets (including iron-ore mines in the Pilbara).
So far, Chinalco has respected labor rights, has not imported Chinese laborers, has complied with environmental laws, and has invested in the community while maintaining a network of local communications.
CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Questionable Chinese mining practices in Latin America
Even though the story is not fully told, the more positive experience of Chinalco in Peru can only be reproduced in countries that maintain a strict rule of law and proper enforcement.
CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Questionable Chinese mining practices in Latin America
The deal digs Mr Albanese out of a hole the size of Tom Price, the huge iron-ore complex in the Pilbara region of Western Australia in which Chinalco stands to take a stake.
The companies will look to leverage their strengths by giving Chinalco global exposure in order to market their products better and Rio Tinto an opportunity to explore selected potential mining areas in China.
But it was objections from Rio's shareholders, and a recovery in commodities prices which lifted mining firms' share prices and made the proposed deal with Chinalco look too generous, that ultimately scuppered the plan.
The Financial Times report suggested that Arcelor Mittal, the world's largest steel maker, could afford to match the 9% stake bought earlier this year by China's state-owned aluminium group Chinalco together with US firm Alcoa.
Chinalco could not avoid this important transformation.
CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Questionable Chinese mining practices in Latin America
In June, Rio rejected an offer by Chinalco, a state-controlled aluminium company, to raise its stake in the mining company to 18%, preferring a joint venture with BHP Billiton encompassing the iron ore assets of both comanies in Australia.
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