Billions of dollars between friends
The Oyu Tolgoi project in Mongolia has a total phase one capital cost of 4.6 billion US dollars and proponent Ivanhoe Mines has only been able to pursue it because of massive support from Rio Tinto.
Rio Tinto’s association with Ivanhoe is controversial because of Ivanhoe’s involvement with the government of Burma, notorious for human rights abuses.
In this article, mining writer Barry Sergeant comments on the Oyu Tolgoi project’s prospects.
See http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page67?oid=104694&sn=Detail&pid=92730.
Rio Tinto responds to complaints about Oyu Tolgoi
Mongolian environmental NGOs appealed to the United Nations over the Oyu Tolgoi project in April. See http://www.minesandcommunities.org/article.php?a=10078.
Rio Tinto’s response is posted on the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre’s website at http://www.business-humanrights.org/Links/Repository/1000570.