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The recipients are communities in WA such as Tom Price, Roebourne, Pannawonica, Paraburdoo and the Kimberley as well as Weipa in Queensland and Nhulunbuy and West Arnhem in the NT.
The supplies of hand sanitiser have left Perth on a 15,000km journey across the top of Australia thanks to Matic Transport, which has donated its time and freight services to distribute the products.
Rio Tinto sourced the anti-bacterial and anti-viral hand cleaning products from a family-owned manufacturer in Perth.
The miner is looking to source additional supplies so it can continue to support remote communities.
Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation CEO Peter Jeffries, who received 1000 litres of donated sanitiser in Roebourne on behalf of the local community, said the corporation had approached its industry partners for support given Aboriginal communities had been identified as particularly vulnerable to COVID-19.
"It will be very important for our members to receive this donation of anti-bacterial hand-cleaning soap to help contain the spread of the virus in the community," he said.
Rio Tinto Iron Ore chief executive Chris Salisbury said the miner was supporting a wide range of initiatives such as this that were designed to help those communities respond and recover from the challenges presented by COVID-19.
"Together with Matic, we are glad to be helping vulnerable and remote communities in Western Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory, to stay safe," he said.
Rio Tinto also donated more than 600 litres of hand hygiene and cleaning products to Pilbara schools last week to support their safe reopening.
A number of schools received the urgent supplies including St Luke's College, Roebourne District and Karratha Senior High Schools, Dampier, Wickham, St Paul's and Karratha Primary Schools, Roebourne Early Learning Centre, and One Tree children's services in Pannawonica.
