Several senior Rio Tinto executives resigned after the Board published a review of the company’s destruction of aboriginal caves at the Juukan Gorge in Western Australia.
In a shocking move, three of Rio’s top executive officers vacated their positions. Firstly, Jean-Sebastien Jacques, chief executive officer of the mining conglomerate since 2016, resigned. Rio Tinto is currently in search of a replacement. He will hold office either until then or March 31, 2021. The media statement on September 11 explained that it was necessary for Jacques to remain with the company until the end of Q1 2021 to ensure that Rio Tinto performs well in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rio’s chief executive officer for iron ore Chris Salisbury will leave the company on Dec 31, 2020, and replaced by Ivan Vella, who is currently the managing director of rail, port and core services, after an interim period.
Rio Tinto chairman Simon Thompson said reiterated the company’s stance that what happened at Jukaan was wrong. He added that the company will work to ensure no other site of historical value is ever demolished or damaged.