A court in Brazil has cleared BHP of responsibility in a criminal case over the Samarco dam collapse which killed 19 people and caused widespread damage to towns and the environment. The court acquitted BHP, Vale and their iron ore joint venture Samarco as well as 22 former directors, executives and technicians in a ruling on Thursday in Brazil. The companies and individuals had faced criminal and environmental charges since 2016, but the Regional Federal Court of the 6th Region concluded there was insufficient evidence to establish any causal link between them and the failure of the Fundao tailings dam.
“The documents, reports, and witness testimonies examined did not identify specific individual actions that directly and decisively contributed to the dam’s collapse,” the court said. The Brazilian Federal Prosecutor’s Office is understood to be reviewing the ruling and considering an appeal. BHP and the Brazilian government last month settled on a $45bn compensation scheme over the 2015 dam collapse.
The settlement was finalised after years of negotiations just before the start of what has been touted as a $70bn class action against BHP in the English High Court. The ruling in the criminal case is not expected to derail the class action trial involving more than 600,000 claimants in the UK, which BHP is defending. However, it may strengthen BHP’s defence to claims of environmental liability.
In addition to the companies, the 22 individuals hit with criminal charges.