Rio Tinto turns to arbitration to settle Mongolia tax dispute
Diversified major Rio Tinto said on Friday that its Mongolian unit, Oyu Tolgoi, had initiated a formal international arbitration process to seek a definitive resolution with regard to a dispute with that country’s tax authority.
The Mongolia Tax Authority issued Rio Tinto with a tax assessment for about $155-million in January 2018, relating to an audit on taxes imposed and paid by Oyu Tolgoi between 2013 and 2015.
Oyu Tolgoi only paid an amount of $4.8-million to settle what it accepted were unpaid taxes, fines and penalties.
“We have worked diligently with the government and tax office representatives in Mongolia to find a mutually acceptable settlement and came to the conclusion that arbitration is the best way forward to resolve this issue,” commented Rio Tinto copper and diamonds CEO Arnaud Soirat.
Canada’s Turquoise Hill, which is majority owned by Rio Tinto, said that it remained of the opinion that all taxes and charges required to be paid under the investment agreement, the amended and restated shareholders’ agreement, the underground mine development and financing plan and Mongolian law had been paid.
Rio Tinto and Mongolia recently reached an agreement on investment agreements governing Oyu Tolgoi.
The Oyu Tolgoi mine is owned by the government of Mongolia (34%) and Turquoise Hill (66%, of which Rio Tinto owns 51%). Rio Tinto is the operator of the project.
Comments
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation