Rio Tinto turns to arbitration to settle Mongolia tax dispute

Diversified major Rio Tinto said on Friday that its Mongolian unit, Oyu Tolgoi, had initiated a formal international arbitration process to seek a definitive resolution with regard to a dispute with that country’s tax authority.

The Mongolia Tax Authority issued Rio Tinto with a tax assessment for about $155-million in January 2018, relating to an audit on taxes imposed and paid by Oyu Tolgoi between 2013 and 2015.

Oyu Tolgoi only paid an amount of $4.8-million to settle what it accepted were unpaid taxes, fines and penalties. “We have worked diligently with the government and tax office representatives in Mongolia to find a mutually acceptable settlement and came to the conclusion that arbitration is the best way forward to resolve this issue,” commented Rio Tinto copper and diamonds CEO Arnaud Soirat.