Diversified major Rio Tinto will curtail operations at Richards Bay Minerals (RBM), in South Africa, to ensure the safety and security of its employees due to an escalation in violence in the communities surrounding the operations.
There has been an escalation of criminal activity towards RBM employees and one was shot and seriously injured in the last few days. As a result, all mining operations at RBM have been halted and the smelters are operating at a reduced level, with a minimum number of employees now on site.