By Melanie Burton
MELBOURNE (Reuters) -An Aboriginal group on Monday called for the chief executive of Sandfire to step down for the miner's failure to address heritage damage at a copper mine in Western Australia.
Sandfire said last week it had discovered damage to an artefact scatter at its Monty copper mine that had occurred over 2017 and 2018, and that it had informed traditional owners and the state's heritage regulator.
Chief Executive Brendan Harris, who took the top job in April, said in a statement to Reuters that he had only become aware of the issue in September and had informed relevant parties straight away.
“I unreservedly apologise personally and on behalf of Sandfire to the Yugunga-Nya," he said, adding that a review was under way to better understand process failures and the time taken to review and respond to the situation.
The Yugunga-Nya group said Sandfire had waited a year to tell them about the damage, and called for a government inquiry. State Premier Roger Cook supported their demands, and on Monday called Sandfire's actions "egregious", local press reported.
Investors are closely watching Australia's management of Aboriginal heritage after Rio Tinto destroyed historically significant rock shelters in 2020.
Western Australia, which had beefed up its heritage protection in response to the incident, agreed to roll back those protections back earlier this year, in response to an outcry from farmers.
In a statement, the Yugunga-Nya called on the Sandfire board to remove Harris and asked board chairperson John Richards to "take control of the situation and engage openly and meaningfully with the Yugunga-Nya".
Sandfire had declined to offer compensation, said elder Andrew Gentle Snr in a statement.
"If something of value is destroyed compensation should be paid. Sandfire's actions show they don't value our heritage," he said.
Shares closed up 2.6% amid gains in the broader resource sector.
Last week, Sandfire said its internal investigation was "significantly complicated" by staff departures after the mine was placed on care and maintenance.
(Reporting by Melanie Burton; editing by Miral Fahmy and Sharon Singleton)
