The Río Tinto Foundation (in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Fundación Río Tinto'', FRT) is a

cultural and non-profit institution based in the municipality of

Minas de Riotinto Minas de Riotinto is a town and municipality located in the province of Huelva, in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, southern Spain. Minas de Riotinto also comprises the neighborhoods known as El Alto de la Mesa and La Dehesa. See also * ...

, in the

province of Huelva Huelva () is a province of southern Spain, in the western part of the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is bordered by Portugal, the provinces of Badajoz, Seville, and Cádiz, and the Atlantic Ocean. Its capital is Huelva. Its area is ...

. The Foundation's objective is the study and preservation of the industrial heritage of the Río Tinto Company Limited, as well as its recovery in projects that generate added value in the Río Tinto region. The foundation is involved in numerous cultural and recreational initiatives.

History

The foundation was created in 1987 by the Río Tinto Minera Company as a cultural and private institution, of a charitable nature, to take charge of the heritage generated over the decades by the companies that had operated the

Rio Tinto Mines Rio Tinto Group is a British-Australian multinational company that is the world's second largest metals and mining corporation (behind BHP). It was founded in 1873 when a group of investors purchased a Rio Tinto Company Limited, mine complex on ...

. Among the purposes of the FRT were the study of mining and metallurgy, as well as the conservation and restoration of the environmental and patrimonial heritage of the mining basin. To this end, the creation of a Mining Park for cultural, tourist and recreational purposes was foreseen, including the creation of a Mining Museum and the conservation of the Ríotinto railroad. After many years of work by the institution, the recovery of the historic railway line for tourist use, as well as the conservation and restoration of the railway heritage are to its credit. A fundamental part of this work was the launching, in November 1994, of the

Tourist Mining Train The Tourist Mining Train is a Spanish tourist train that travels along the historic Riotinto Railway, in the province of Huelva, autonomous community of Andalusia. The first railway services were started in 1994 by the Río Tinto Foundation, usin ...

. The FRT also manages the

Riotinto Mining Museum Riotinto Mining Museum is a museum located in the Spanish municipality of Minas de Riotinto, in the province of Huelva, which is dedicated to the mining activity in the area and its history. The facilities were inaugurated in 1992 and are managed ...

, inaugurated in 1992, and the Mining Historical Archive, which holds the archival funds derived from the business activity of the successive owners of the mines.

Presidents

* Ernest Lluch Martín (1987–1991) *

José Rodríguez de la Borbolla José María Rodríguez de la Borbolla Camoyán (born 16 April 1947) is a Spanish politician and lawyer, member of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party of Andalusia, who was President of Andalusia between 1984 and 1990. Legacy In 2021 he donated ...

(1991–2002) *

Rafael Benjumea Cabeza de Vaca Rafael Benjumea y Cabeza de Vaca (29 January 1939 – 7 April 2021); Marquis of Valdecañas, Count of Peñón de la Vega & Count of Guadalhorce) was a Spanish aristocrat and engineer. He was also president of the Duques de Soria Foundation. Biogr ...

(2002–2021) *

María Benjumea Cabeza de Vaca Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...

(2021–present)

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

{{Commons, Fundación Río Tinto
Official website
of the Río Tinto Foundation (in Spanish). Rio Tinto (corporation) Non-profit organisations based in Spain Foundations based in Spain