Turquoise Hill secures temporary interim relief in arbitration against Rio Tinto

Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd. secured a temporary order for urgent interim relief in its arbitration proceedings against Rio Tinto over funding disputes on the underground expansion project at the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine in Mongolia.

Rio Tinto's 50.79%-owned Turquoise Hill holds a 66% stake in Oyu Tolgoi, and the Mongolian government holds the rest. The rift between Rio Tinto and Turquoise Hill stemmed from the mining giant's attempts to limit its subsidiary's project financing options.

Following the order, Turquoise Hill said Feb. 4 that Rio Tinto may not use its existing contractual arrangements to authorize reprofiling negotiations with project lenders that would render Oyu Tolgoi LLC unable to execute an offering of bonds in 2021.

The order will also restrict Turquoise Hill from engaging in funding and other matters with its fellow project stakeholders, including state-owned Erdenes Oyu Tolgoi LLC and the Mongolian government.

Turquoise Hill said the parties are required to return before the arbitrator March 2 to apply for any further relief prior to the arbitration hearing, including whether the order's temporary injunction should continue.