NZ Aluminium Smelter chief executive Stu Hamilton says his focus is on the people of Tiwai

Rio Tinto has announced the country's only aluminium smelter will wind up operations in August 2021.

The Tiwai Point plant is Southland's largest employer -- employing a thousand workers directly - and has created 16-hundred jobs in the wider community.

Hamilton says he's disappointed they couldn't achieve an outcome that enables that team to keep operating.

He says they've got some programmes they can implement to help transition people through the coming months - but right now it's about giving them as much information as possible.