Chinalco boss, and associate of Rio Tinto, accused of corruption
Published by MAC on 2014-12-27Source: The Australian
Sun sets as Mr Zhaoxue is expelled from China's communist party
A Chinese state investigation being conducted into the former general manager of metals company Chinalco, which is Rio Tinto's largest shareholder and a huge customer, found that he accepted "a huge amount in bribes."
Chinalco invested in Rio Tinto in 2008. The following year, four leading Rio Tinto Chinese contract "negotiators" with Chinese iron ore smelters, were found guilty of corruption in their home country and prompty imprisoned. See: London Calling raises some awkward questions about Chinese arrests
Sun Zhaoxue resigned from Chalco (Chinalco's parent company) in September this year, as charges of graft began to catch up on him. Having played a leading roll in both companies for many years, he was undoubtedly around when the 2009 charges were laid.
However, whether they include alleged involvement with the disgraced "Rio Tinto four" isn't yet known.
Chinalco boss Sun Zhaoxue kicked out of Communist Party over corruption allegations
Scott Murdoch, China Correspondent
The Australian
24 December 2014
Beijing - THE former general manager of Chinalco, one of China’s largest state owned enterprises which owns a 10 per cent stake in Rio Tinto, has been kicked out of the Chinese Communist Party and faces a number of high level corruption and adultery charges.
Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, announced Sun Zhaoxue was being investigated by the Supreme People’s Procurate for allegedly accepting bribes during his lengthy career in the steel industry.
Mr Sun stood aside from the board of Chinalco and its listed united, Chalco, three months ago after rumours surfaced that he was under investigation.
“The CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) announced earlier ... that Sun had been expelled from the CPC and public office following its own investigation,” Xinhua said.
“The CCDI investigation found that Sun took advantage of his post to seek profits for others, asked for and accepted “a huge amount in bribes,” and committed adultery.”
During his leadership of Chinalco, Mr Sun worked closely alongside Rio Tinto developing a memorandum of understanding for the two mining companies to share technology development projects.
Mr Sun signed the deal in Beijing with Rio Tinto chief executive Sam Walsh in November last year and was quoted in a Rio Tinto press release when the two companies finalised an investment framework to develop stages three and four of the Simandou project in Guinea in May this year.