Judge Halts Arizona Land Transfer To Rio Tinto Citing Native Appeal

U.S. District Judge Steven Logan has temporarily blocked the controversial transfer of federal land in Arizona to mining firms Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) and BHP (NYSE:BHP). Logan cited the need for the U.S. Supreme Court to deliberate on an appeal filed by Native American groups opposing the project.

The decision halts progress on the Resolution Copper project, a planned large-scale underground copper mine near Superior, Arizona. The project sits atop more than 40 billion pounds (18.1 million metric tons) of copper, a metal critical to electric vehicles and clean energy infrastructure. However, it also lies beneath Oak Flat, a site sacred to the San Carlos Apache people.

In an 18-page ruling, Judge Logan clarified the risk of irreparable harm to Apache religious rights if the land transfer were permitted before the Supreme Court makes its decision.

"It is abundantly clear that the balance of equities tips sharply in [Apache Stronghold's] favor," he wrote, according to Reuters. "They have established a likelihood of irreparable harm should the transfer proceed."

The project can potentially produce over 25% of anticipated domestic copper demand for several decades, but it would create a 3-kilometer-wide, 300-meter-deep crater, effectively destroying the Oak Flat site.

Logan dismissed Rio's arguments that their $2.7 billion investment and monthly maintenance costs of $11 million warranted urgency, stating these were a "voluntary choice."

The project's legal history is complex. Though Congress and then-President Barack Obama approved the land swap enabling the project in 2014, President Donald Trump moved to expedite the land transfer during his first term. President Joe Biden reversed that action, pending further court review. Yet Trump recently restarted the process, aiming for a final transfer by June 16, driving the emergency request that led to Logan's ruling.

If built, Resolution would be one of Rio Tinto's most significant future copper assets, offering decades of domestic supply at a time when the U.S. seeks to reduce reliance on mineral imports. However, the project faces the same kind of local backlash that led to the halt of Rio Tinto's Jadar lithium project in Serbia.

Rio Tinto has been mitigating development risk through strategic partnerships. Today, it announced a joint venture with Japan's Sumitomo Metal Mining to develop the Winu copper and gold project in Western Australia. Under the deal, Sumitomo will pay up to $430.4 million for a 30% stake, with $195 million upfront and further payments based on milestones.

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