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Turquoise Hill said on Thursday Ulf Quelmann resigned, effective March 3, after Rio said it would vote against his re-election to the board.

Pentwater, Turquoise Hill`s largest shareholder after Rio with a 9% stake, said it believed the boards of Turquoise and Rio breached their legal obligations in the way Quelmann`s departure was handled.

In response to Pentwater`s statement, a Rio spokesman said the company supports the reset of leadership at Turquoise.

Turquoise Hill did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

During Quelmann`s over two-year tenure as CEO, Turquoise found itself locked in a feud with Rio over how to fund the underground expansion of the massive Oyu Tolgoi copper/gold mine in Mongolia.

Rio is the operator for the mine and owns 51% of Turquoise Hill, which in turn owns 66% of Oyu Tolgoi.

Pentwater did not detail what actions it plans to take and did not immediately respond to a request for comment.