Do we like them?

Do we like Rio Tinto?

Global mining group (iron ore, copper, aluminium, lithium, minerals), dual-listed and run from London with a big base in Australia.

Our score: 4 out of 10. Mixed, leaning cautious. It has paid heavily for past failures and is mending ties, but Juukan Gorge, a bullying and harassment culture and open disputes with Traditional Owners still weigh on it.

Rio Tinto is one of the world's biggest miners. The chair is Dominic Barton. Simon Trott, an Australian who ran the iron ore arm, took over as CEO in August 2025. He is the fourth boss in about ten years. The board says it wants better operations and tighter cost discipline.

The big stain is Juukan Gorge. In May 2020 Rio blasted two rock shelters in Western Australia that had been occupied for 46,000 years. It had legal permission from 2013. The outcry led to a Senate inquiry, and the CEO and two other executives left. Rio apologised.

Has it learned? Mixed. Reuters reported that at the 2025 AGM a Robe River Kuruma representative said Rio had not delivered on its pledges. Chair Barton said Rio was committed to reaching an agreement. In September 2026 Rio announced new agreements with the Ngarlawangga and Nyangumarta groups.

Inside the company, an independent review led by Elizabeth Broderick in 2022 found systemic bullying, sexual harassment and racism. Rio promised to act on all the recommendations. A later progress review found improvement but ongoing problems. A fatal incident at Kennecott was announced in March 2026.

We score it 4 out of 10. It has been fined in the court of public opinion and has made real changes. But it is still a miner with a heavy footprint, unresolved community disputes and a recent record of serious failures. It is not one we'd put our money behind with confidence.