Mr Stausholm said it had been an “extraordinary year” for Rio but a “year of extremes”. “Our successful response to the COVID-19 pandemic and strong safety performance were overshadowed by the tragic events at the Juukan Gorge,which should never have happened,” he said.
Rio Tinto faced an intense public and political backlash last year after deciding to blow up the 46,000-year-old rock shelters at WA’s Juukan Gorge which went against the wishes of the land’s traditional owners,prompted a federal inquiry and led to theresignation of former chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques.Mr Stausholm said restoring trust was one of his top priorities and he had recently travelled to the Pilbara to meet with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) people,who were left devastated by the site’s destruction,and “express my deep regret about the damage we caused”.
In one of his first major policy shifts as CEO,Mr Stausholm on Wednesday said Rio would adopt goals to reduce the emissions intensity of customers like the Chinese steel mills that use its most valuable commodity,iron ore.
The change comes after the company has for years opposed shareholder and activist pressure to take account for customers’ indirect emissions,known as “Scope 3” emissions,which are vastly greater than those caused by Rio’s direct operations. Mr Stausholm also pledged to hold a shareholder vote on climate change disclosures next year,
“We are all learning on the journey of climate change,” Mr Stausholm said. “This is a real shift,but it’s also a natural development – you start with your own emissions and you expand from there.”
Steel mills in China are by far the biggest consumers of Australian iron ore,which is combined with coals in huge blast furnaces heated at more than 1000 degrees to churn out liquid steel.