According to Businesswire in London, Rio Tinto has declared force majeure on customer contracts at Richards Bay Minerals (RBM) in South Africa due to an escalation in the security situation at the operations. This has led to the decision to cease operations until the safety and security position improves.

Rio Tinto chief executive Minerals, Sinead Kaufman, said: “The safety of our people is our top priority.We continue to offer our full support to the investigating authorities and I would like to acknowledge the ongoing support of the regional and national governments and South African Police Service as we work together to ensure that we can safely resume operations.”