Rio Tinto has been active in its efforts to sell off many of its assets, with the most recent being it’s A$83 million majority stake in Ivanhoe Australia.

Ivanhoe Australia said it became aware of the potential sale following a Dow Jones report that Turquoise Hill, a unit of Rio Tinto, had appointed Citi to advise on a sale of the stake.

A sale of Turquoise Hill's 57 percent stake in Ivanhoe Australia would come as no surprise as Rio Tinto's main interest in Turquoise Hill is its stake in the giant Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine in Mongolia, Reuters reported.

However, the appointment of an adviser for the sale shows new Rio Tinto chief executive Sam Walsh is serious about shedding assets swiftly while slashing $5 billion in costs to appease shareholders who want to see the major miners use their capital more wisely, Reuters reported.

Rio Tinto is also looking to sell its diamonds business, Pacific Aluminium unit, a 29 percent stake in Coal & Allied and the Northparkes copper mine in Australia.