BHP is targeted because it was the co-owner, with the Brazilian group Vale, of the Brazilian mining company Samarco managing an iron ore waste dam which collapsed on November 5, 2015.

This event caused a disaster considered the worst environmental tragedy in the history of Brazil.

More than 200,000 plaintiffs, including the Krenak indigenous people, are already parties to this action, according to the law firm Pogust Goodhead, which is defending them, but an equivalent number of clients are preparing to join the complaint.

The firm, which welcomes a victory after four years of proceedings, says it is the largest group litigation ever examined by a civil court in England.

In total, the sums requested from the company by more than 400,000 plaintiffs could exceed 10 billion pounds (11.4 billion euros) specifies the firm, against 5 billion pounds of damage initially estimated when the complaint was filed.

The opening date of this trial, whose hearings are scheduled over eight weeks, is "set for April 9, 2024" announced the High Court of Justice in its decision rendered on Wednesday and consulted by AFP.

"Now is the time to avoid further delays and make substantial progress in resolving the dispute," said the judge.

The dam had broken near the city of Mariana, in the state of Minas Gerais, releasing a gigantic mudslide that completely submerged the village of Bento Rodrigues, killing 19 people and leaving more than 600 residents homeless.

The flow then spread to the Atlantic Ocean for 650 kilometers through the bed of the Rio Doce river.

On its way, it killed thousands of animals, devastated protected rainforest areas, and left 280,000 people without water.

It is a "procedural decision" which "has nothing to do with the merits of the action in the United Kingdom", reacted BHP, a group listed in both London and Sydney, Thursday in a statement sent to AFP.

The company "contests the claims in full and will continue to defend itself" in this case, further believing that it is redundant with other ongoing legal proceedings in Brazil.

© 2022 AFP