It’s a devastating loss, but the destruction of a culturally significant Aboriginal site is not an isolated incident. Rio Tinto was acting within the law.
Mineral-rich Mongolia is experiencing a mining boom, but its growth is creating distrust and conflict with herder communities.
As the mining stops and the repair begins, the commitment of mining companies and government regulators are being put to the test on a global scale.
AAP Image/Tara Ravens
The shareholder resolution on climate change at Rio Tinto’s AGM is another indication of how much investor culture is tilting towards demanding that companies take a responsible climate stance.
Queensland Alumina is a joint venture between Rio Tinto and Rusal.
AAP
Many contracts have been ended in cases of war or changes in the law. But government action making a contract more expensive does not mean it will be terminated.
And if you wait too long to survey a community, it can end up being too be too late to turn the tide of opinion.
Richard Swinton
‘Social licence to operate’ is a term describing how much community support a project or company has. As the Northern Rivers CSG experience shows, failing to get it can have costly impacts for firms.
The mining sector is facing one of its toughest periods and large miners like BHP and Rio Tinto are not immune.
BHP/AAP
While it’s easy for the large miners to argue increased iron ore production is business as usual, the overall cost to the sector warrants a closer inspection.
Rio Tinto’s Mount Thorley-Warkworth mine in the Hunter Valley, which looks set to expand further. The NSW planning department says it would “not be reasonable” to require Rio Tinto “to completely or even partially backfill the final void”.
Lock The Gate Alliance/Flickr
There are hundreds of derelict mine sites across New South Wales – and the state planning department has admitted it is “not aware of the total size” of large mining voids currently being left behind.
Vladimir Putin with Mongolia president Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj in Ulaanbaataar in 2014.
EPA
This latest part of our series on Russia’s relations with its neighbours focuses on the huge empty land of Mongolia, Moscow’s original Soviet satellite state in the 1920s. These days it sits on the verge…
Mining in Madagascar – but do the miners give enough back?
Amy Glass/People and Development/supplied
“Biodiversity offsetting” – protecting animals and plants in one area to make up for negative impacts in another – is increasingly used by companies such as mining firms, as a way to boost their corporate…
A US Supreme Court decision last week damaged the legal options for holding corporations to account for human rights and environmental abuses.
Philosophicalswag
The US Supreme Court has handed down a landmark decision that will have drawn sighs of relief from corporate boardrooms in Australia and around the world. Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum was brought by…
The replacement of Tom Albanese by Sam Walsh as Rio Tinto chief following write-downs on Riversdale Mining in Mozambique indicates some of the continuing difficulties of working in developing countries.
AAP
Two recent events have highlighted the potential pitfalls of miners doing business in developing states. The first was the departure of Tom Albanese as Rio Tinto’s Chief Executive following a $13.3 billion…
Iron ore prices have rebounded: but forecasting prices is a tricky business.
AAP
Forecasting commodity prices is like buying a second hand car. Only the car’s previous owner and perhaps the dealer really know what the car is actually like. In contrast you, the buyer, are an outsider…
The Mining industry’s “This is our Story” campaign showing the sector’s relationship with ordinary Australians may be part of a longer term strategy to avoid further taxation.
Screenshot from thisisourstory.com.au
Have you wondered why those chipper ads that share the personal stories of mining workers are still being rolled out on TV and at cinemas? In one, I recently learned about a sweet group of women whose…
Chinese investment in smaller iron-ore suppliers in Western Australia not only presents challenges for the market power of the Big 3 mining companies, but also for the viability of iron ore projects in Australia.
AAP
With several major mining projects being put on ice this week, talk has quickly turned to whether the Australian mining boom is about to go bust. Jumping on comments by the Resources Minister that “the…
Stuck in Botany Bay: Greenpeace activists celebrate the Danish government’s decision to halt Orica’s plans to ship toxic waste to Denmark.
AAP
Are sustainability-dependent executive bonuses the answer to saving the planet? Research recently conducted by the Centre for Corporate Governance at the University of Technology, Sydney, examined whether…
China will dominate global steel production, but Australia can have a future in high value steel making - if we don’t lose our nerve.
AAP
Recently, I met a friend at a conference in Japan. My friend is a specialist in steelmaking technology and, after a long successful career in Japan, had taken up a position in a Chinese Steel company called…