Rio Tinto In Spotlight After US Judge Pauses Land Transfer For Copper Project

U.S. District Judge Steven Logan said Apache Stronghold will likely succeed in its appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court against the mine.

A U.S. federal judge temporarily blocked Donald Trump’s administration from transferring land to mining giant Rio Tinto for a copper mine in Arizona opposed by Native Americans, according to a report.

U.S. District Judge Steven Logan said on Friday that the Apache Stronghold, consisting of San Carlos Apache people and allies, will likely succeed in its appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court against the project, and therefore, the land transfer should be stopped for now, Reuters reported.

"It is abundantly clear that the balance of equities tips sharply in (Apache Stronghold's) favor, and that even in the short term, they have established a likelihood of irreparable harm should the transfer proceed," Logan reportedly said.

Rio, with a 55% stake, and BHP, with a 45% stake, are the joint owners of the project. The project could become the largest copper mine in North America and produce 40 billion pounds of copper.

According to the report, the dispute revolves around the federally owned Oak Flat Campground, a sacred site where many Apache worship their deities.

If the proposed mine is developed, it could form a crater approximately 2 miles (3 km) wide and 1,000 feet (304 m) deep, gradually consuming the worship site.

Trump began transferring land in his first term before his successor, Joe Biden, stopped the process. As per the report, the Supreme Court has said at least 13 times it will continue to deliberate on the appeal request.

Logan reportedly said in his Friday ruling that there is “good reason” to anticipate that the Supreme Court will take the case.

He added that Rio and BHP's promises to maintain public access to the land for as long as safely possible "are insufficient," as they are not legally binding.

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits was in the ‘neutral’ (48/100) territory, while retail chatter was ‘low.’

Rio Tinto stock has gained 1.8% year to date (YTD).

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