Additional disclosure by Rio satisfies accounting panel

15th Mar 2011 11:32

The Financial Reporting Review Panel of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has had Rio Tinto's accounts under review but it says it "regards its enquiries as concluded" after the mining giant added more information on environmental and social issues to its 2010 annual review. A complaint had been made in July 2010 about the lack of this information in the 2008 accounts of Rio Tinto. The complainant felt that the directors' report did not contain a comprehensive analysis of the business. The panel held discussions with Rio Tinto about what should be included and this has resulted in additional disclosure this year. The Financial Reporting Review Panel says that the additional information "comprises details of the potential health risks posed by exposure to workers and communities surrounding uranium mines; details of the sensitivities the group faces in dealing with local communities, such as the La Granja copper development in Peru and the Eagle project in Michigan in the United States; an example of the potential for the group's projects to impact on biodiversity, with information relating to biodiversity projects associated with the group's activities in Madagascar; additional details of the group's non-managed Grasberg mine in Indonesia and the nature of the environmental, social and reputational issues relating to that mine".