IRON ORE – GUINEA

Rio Tinto in sweetheart tax deal with Guinea junta

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker, Mark Wembridge
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 & 18 : 10-Sep-25

Rio Tinto and its partners have negotiated a corporate tax rate of just 15 per cent for the rail and port component of the Simandou iron ore project in Guinea. This tax rate will apply for the first 17 years of operation of the port and rail infrastructure, before rising to 25 per cent; this compares with the standard corporate tax rate of 35 per cent in Guinea. The iron ore mines will have a different tax arrangement. Rio Tinto, Singapore-based Winning International and Chinese steelmaker Baowu are investing $US23.2 billion ($35.1 billion) on the two Simandou iron ore mines and the associated rail and port infrastructure. Iron ore shipments are slated to commence in November.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, WINNING INTERNATIONAL, CHINA BAOWU STEEL GROUP CORPORATION LIMITED

Rio Tinto says all systems go for Simandou

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 15 & 18 : 17-Jul-24

Rio Tinto has advised that the Simandou iron ore project has received final approval from the Guinean and Chinese governments. Rio Tinto is investing $US6.2bn in the development of mine, port and rail infrastructure at the Simandou project, while its share of annual production will be about 27 million tonnes. Meanwhile, Rio Tinto has indicated that a Pilbara iron ore train derailment in May affected shipments and production during the June quarter; the company shipped 158.3 million tonnes of iron ore in the first half of 2024, which will require a big increase in the second half to meet its full-year guidance of 323 to 338 million tonnes.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Rio pays $22m to settle probe into Simandou

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 8-Mar-23

Rio Tinto has agreed to pay $US15m ($22m) to settle the US Securities & Exchange Commission’s investigation into payments it made to a Guinean political adviser. The SEC found that Rio Tinto had violated accounting and record-keeping standards by failing to properly document its engagement with Francois de Combret, who had been hired in 2011 to help the company to secure the mining rights to the Simandou iron ore deposit. The scandal resulted in the termination of two senior Rio Tinto executives in 2016.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, UNITED STATES. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Chinese back Rio ore mine in Africa

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 24 : 6-Mar-20

Media reports have suggested that China’s State-owned Assets Supervision & Administration Commission will approve an investment in the Simandou iron ore deposit in Guinea. SASAC oversees investments made by Chinese government-owned enterprises such as Chinalco, which is one of Rio Tinto’s partners in the deposit. The massive cost of developing the Simandou deposit – which has been estimated at around $US20bn ($30.2bn) – has contributed to the project being stalled for more than two decades.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, CHINA. STATE-OWNED ASSETS SUPERVISION AND ADMINISTRATION COMMISSION, ALUMINIUM CORPORATION OF CHINA LIMITED

Doubts about Fortescue’s Simandou bid

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 21 : 9-Oct-19

Lyndon Fagan of JP Morgan has expressed reservations about Fortescue Metals Group’s bid for blocks 1 and 2 of the Simandou iron ore project in Guinea. He says a successful bid may not be welcomed by shareholders, given the sovereign risks associated with the West African nation. He adds that given Simandou’s high-grade iron ore and the fact that it is likely to be developed, Fortescue may be taking the view that it is better to participate in a project that will compete with Fortescue’s own Pilbara operations.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Fortescue in race for Simandou

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 8-Oct-19

Fortescue Metals Group and the SMB-Winning consortium are said to be the only remaining contenders to acquire the right to develop blocks 1 and 2 of the Simandou iron ore deposit in Guinea. Fortescue CEO Elizabeth Gaines says details of the pure-play iron ore miner’s bid are confidential and there is no guarantee that any bid will be successful. Simandou is estimated to hold more than two billion tonnes of iron ore, with average grades of about 65 per cent iron content.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, UMS, SHANDONG WEIQIAO ALUMINIUM POWER COMPANY LIMITED, WINNING SHIPPING, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BSG RESOURCES LIMITED, VALE SA, ALUMINIUM CORPORATION OF CHINA LIMITED, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

UK to probe Rio’s Guinea bribe scandal

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 19 & 22 : 26-Jul-17

The Serious Fraud Office in the UK will undertake an investigation into a $US10.5m payment to a consultant in 2011 regarding Rio Tinto’s Simandou iron ore project in Guinea. The resources giant had notified anti-bribery agencies in the US, the UK and Australia about its concerns regarding the payment in late 2016. The SFO has asked for anyone with further information on the issue to come forward. The scandal resulted in the dismissal of two senior Rio Tinto executives.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, GREAT BRITAIN. SERIOUS FRAUD OFFICE, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, UNITED STATES. DEPT OF JUSTICE, UNITED STATES. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, ROLLS-ROYCE PLC

Rio’s deferral of bonus to Walsh ‘reasonable’

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 12-Apr-17

Proxy adviser ISS has backed Rio Tinto’s decision to delay paying bonuses to former CEO Sam Walsh until it completes an investigation into the Simandou payments scandal. The firm concluded that Rio’s action regarding Walsh’s short and long-term bonuses was "reasonable". However, ISS also noted that in contrast to Walsh, two Rio Tinto executives who were sacked over the iron ore scandal in Guinea will lose their bonuses completely, which will cost them about $A4m apiece.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, INSTITUTIONAL SHAREHOLDER SERVICES INCORPORATED, MOXICO RESOURCES PLC

Rio facing US probe over Mozambique

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Matthew Stevens
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 16 : 29-Nov-16

It has been revealed that Rio Tinto’s 2011 acquisition of Riversdale Mining has been the subject of a confidential investigation by the US Securities & Exchange Commission. The probe into the $US4.16bn takeover of the Mozambique-focused coal producer predates revelations over the scandal surrounding the Simandou iron ore project in Guinea. A subsequent $US3.269bn write-down in the value of the Mozambique assets in Rio’s 2012 financial accounts led to the departure of several top executives, including CEO Tom Albanese.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, RIVERSDALE MINING LIMITED, UNITED STATES. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, GREAT BRITAIN. SERIOUS FRAUD OFFICE, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, KIRKLAND AND ELLIS LLP, INTERNATIONAL COAL VENTURES LIMITED

Sacked Rio exec set for legal stoush

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 12 : 18-Nov-16

Bold Baatar will succeed Alan Davies as CEO of Rio Tinto’s energy and minerals division, after the latter was dismissed following an internal investigation into a scandal regarding the Simandou iron ore project in Guinea. Davies has criticised Rio’s handling of the investigation, and he intends to take legal action over his dismissal. Rio has also sacked its head of legal affairs, Debra Valentine. The $US10.5m payment to a consultant in Guinea has been referred to regulatory authorities in Australia, the US and the UK.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, THE MELBOURNE MINING CLUB, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE