Autonomous Bougainville Government, Bougainville Copper Limited and Rio Tinto hold first roundtable to address Panguna Mine Legacy


10 March 2025

MELBOURNE, Australia -- The first meeting of the Roundtable to address findings from the Panguna Mine Legacy Impact Assessment (PMLIA) Report was held in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, on 6 March 2025. This joint undertaking follows the November 2024 signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG), Bougainville Copper Limited (BCL) and Rio Tinto, which formally established the Roundtable framework.

Building on this foundation, the Roundtable aims to develop a process for collectively remedying actual and potential impacts identified in the PMLIA Report published in December 2024, including the design of a potential remedy mechanism aligned with the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The meeting is an important first step towards finding ways to address the legacy issues of the Panguna Mine. The Roundtable is committed to developing solutions in partnership with other relevant stakeholders that are both practical and meaningful for the communities who have lived with these impacts.

Throughout the meeting, the parties deliberated and reached consensus on the scope of additional investigations needed to address the most critical impacts identified in the PMLIA. This will be submitted for consultation with and formal endorsement by the PMLIA Oversight Committee, which includes diverse stakeholders representing local communities, the Government of Papua New Guinea, the Autonomous Bougainville Government, Bougainville Copper Limited, Rio Tinto, and the Human Rights Law Centre.

In addition, the parties are addressing ageing infrastructure and other priority issues highlighted by the PMLIA. The ABG has launched an education awareness program to inform local communities and small-scale miners about potential geo-technical risks.

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Category: General