British-Australian multinational mining company Rio Tinto will carry out the rehabilitation of the closed Ranger uranium mine in Australia’s Northern Territory, an Australian government body has ruled.

The Takeovers Panel’s decision ends a dispute over whether Rio Tinto or its majority owned uranium producer Energy Resources of Australia (ERA) would assume the site restoration’s costs. It also clears the way for Rio Tinto to assume full control of ERA via a capital raising announced in August.

ERA halted activities at Ranger in 2021, after 40 years of operations. The initial goal was to finish the site cleanup by 2026.