BHP Billiton, a 50 percent shareholder at Brazil pellet producer Samarco, said it will defend against a court filing by Australian investors over the Samarco disaster, which killed 19 people and halted production at the pellet producer in November 2015. Vale owns the remaining 50 percent stake.
“BHP notes the media reports concerning the Australian class action in relation to the Samarco dam failure,” the Australian investor said. “BHP confirms it has been served with a class action proceeding filed in the Federal Court of Australia in Victoria. BHP intends to defend the claim.”
BHP Billiton did not provide further details about the class action suit.
SteelOrbis has learned the class auction was filed by Phi Finney McDonald and G&E KTMC Funding (G&E KTMC). G&E KTMC is backed by Grant & Eisenhofer and Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, two of the “most successful and respected shareholder litigation firms,” in the US, according to a note at the class auction site.
The firms seek to recover “some” of the loss in “share value” suffered by investors as a result of BHP’s “alleged failure to disclose material information to the market and its alleged misleading or deceptive conduct.”
The filing was announced in late July, just after Samarco, Vale and BHP Billiton reached a deal with public prosecutors to settle the Mariana case. The three companies agreed on new conduct adjustment commitment terms (TAC), and also agreed to settle a BRL 20 billion lawsuit. The parties also agreed to set a two-year timeline to settle another BRL 155 billion lawsuit.