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BHP Group Ltd on Friday vowed to appeal after the English High Court found the diversified miner liable for the 2015 Fundao dam disaster. The tailings dam was operated by Samarco Mineracao SA, a 50-50 joint venture of BHP and Vale SA. The decision by the English High Court follows a five-month first stage trial of the UK group action, BHP said in a statement on Friday. Any assessment of damages will be determined in second and third stage trials expected to complete in 2028 or 2029, the miner said. BHP said it believes the UK group action is ‘duplicative of remediation and compensation’ that has already occurred in Brazil. In October last year, BHP and its joint-venture partner Vale reached an agreement with Brazilian authorities that would see the two mining groups pay R$170 billion, or $31.7 billion, related to the dam collapse in 2015. BHP in September this year settled a shareholder class action over the joint venture in Brazil for A$110 million, or $72 million. On Friday, BHP said it intends to appeal the UK court decision and will continue to defend the UK group action. The English High Court found that BHP is liable on the basis that it is a ‘polluter’ under Brazilian environmental law and at fault under the Brazilian civil code. This court rejected the argument that BHP is liable under Brazilian corporate law, BHP said. Subject to BHP’s appeal, a second stage trial will decide whether losses claimed by the claimants were caused by the dam failure. This trial is currently scheduled for October 2026 to March 2027, BHP said. Following any decision and appeals in that trial, a stage three trial may also be required, where each remaining claimant would need to prove their individual damages before BHP is required to make any payments to them, the mining group said, indicating that this third trial is unlikely to occur before 2028. Shares in BHP were down 2.4% to 2,082.00 pence in London on Friday morning, while they lost 2.6% to R 469.30 in Johannesburg at midday. In Sydney, the stock closed 1.3% lower at A$42.75. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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