Rio Tinto cuts ties with Russia
Rio Tinto became the first major mining company to announce it was severing ties with Russian businesses – joining a raft of Western companies pulling out of the country following its invasion of Ukraine.
A spokesman told Reuters: “Rio Tinto is in the process of terminating all commercial relationships it has with any Russian business.”
The miner has an 80 per cent stake in Queensland Alumina (QAL), which is a joint venture with Russia’s Rusal International (Rusal).
Rusal is the world’s second-largest aluminium producer, and owns the remaining 20 per cent.
Rio Tinto previously revealed it was actively reviewing any existing commercial ties to Russia across its global business, and that it has no operational assets or employees to pull out of the country.
The group is still looking for alternative fuel sources for its Mongolian copper operations at Oyu Tolgoi.
The divestment from Russia follows multiple Western companies exiting the country in recent weeks, including energy giants such as BP and Shell.
Leading consumer companies such as McDonald’s, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola and Starbucks have also trading with Russia this week, offering a united rebuke of the war on Ukraine.
The company made headlines last month after its whopping £12.4bn shareholder payout, alongside a damning report into its workplace culture which revealed widespread bullying, racism and multiple complaints of sexual assault.