Rio Tinto CEO to step down after Australia cave blast review

(Reuters) – Rio Tinto said on Friday its chief executive would step down in the wake of mounting dissatisfaction over the findings of an internal review into how the miner legally destroyed historically significant Aboriginal rockshelters.

A process to identify a successor to CEO Jean-Sbastien Jacques was under way and he will continue in the role until a replacement is found or March 31 next year, whichever is earlier, the company said.

After a board-led review of the legal destruction of the sacred sites in Western Australia in May for a mine expansion, Rio cut the short-term bonuses of some senior officials, including its chief executive, but activists and investors have said this was not enough.

(Reporting by Rashmi Ashok in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)