Sacked Rio executive quits Rolls-Royce

THE Rio Tinto executive sacked by the mining group over a bribery scandal has quit as a non-executive director at the engine maker Rolls-Royce.

Alan Davies was suspended from Rio and another executive stepped down earlier this month after the mining giant said it had contacted the authorities about an investigation into $10.5m (£8.5m) paid to a consultant on a major iron ore project in Guinea. On Wednesday, Rio terminated the pair’s contracts. Mr Davies stated that there were no grounds for Rio’s termination of his employment.

It is understood Mr Davies decided he had to leave the FTSE 100 engineering group given what a source close to him described as the “damage to his professional reputation, which he did not want to have an impact on Rolls-Royce”.

The resignation comes as the Serious Fraud Office continues to investigate allegations Rolls spent years hiring middlemen to pay bribes to win contracts.

Mr Davies served just over a year as a non-executive, and sat on committees including Rolls’s ethics group.

The departure is the third blow for Rolls this week. The company’s shares had tumbled after an investor day revealed a new accounting method will reduce profits, while news yesterday of problems with a high profile £6.1bn order sent the Rolls stock down another 5.9pc to 657½p.

Sir Tim Clark, boss at Emirates, said yesterday the airline was in talks with the engineer to resolve unspecified “technical issues” with the engines Rolls is supplying for its A380 superjumbos. Sir Tim said his airline will “hopefully” take delivery of the first Rolls-powered A380 next month.

A source cited ‘damage to his reputation, which he did not want to have an impact on Rolls’