BHP hit with lawsuit after disaster

BHP has been served with a Federal Court class action over investor losses following the fatal Samarco dam disaster in Brazil.

BHP yesterday said it would defend the claim lodged in Victoria. The global miner did not specify who had filed the class action, which relates to the 2015 dam burst that killed 19 people.

Samarco, with its parent companies Vale SA and BHP, signed a deal with Brazilian authorities in June for the framework to settle a $7.1 billion lawsuit over the failure.

BHP also agreed to fund a total of $215 million in financial support for the Renova Foundation, created to help victims of the disaster. BHP said it expected to record a charge of $US650 million ($875 million) in its full-year results due to the failure.