Fortescue Metals
Group (ASX:FMG) chief executive officer and founder Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest has
launched an all-out war on rivals BHP Billiton (ASX:BHP) and Rio Tinto
(ASX:RIO) urging Australians to demand the government intervention to stop the
miners iron ore expansion plans.
In an editorial written for News.com, the head of the
world's No.4 iron ore mining company said BHP and Rio were jeopardizing the
economy, accusing them of “callous disregard for Australia.”
The billionaire
philanthropist said that because of the reckless actions of the big iron
miners he was now “being forced” to lay off more than 100 workers a day in his
own company.
The billionaire philanthropist
said that because of the reckless actions of the big iron miners he was
now “being forced” to lay off more than 100 workers a day in his own company.
"These big
companies say they must flood the market next year and the year after and the
year after even though it will crash the price further," Forrest wrote.
"Every time they say this the price falls again."
Forrest argues that
for every dollar lost the economy loses A$800 million ($632m) and the
government misses another $300 million ($235m) in company tax revenue. He said
funding for everything from education to superannuation is, this way, being put
at risk and his own work to boost universities and end Aboriginal disadvantage
is being hurt.
He continued his
aggressive call-to-arms buy asking Australians to bombard their local members
of parliament and question if BHP and Rio should be allowed to even operate in
the country.
Reactions to
Forrester’s renewed attack on the big miners, as expected, were quick to come.
The Minerals Council of Australia said Forrest was playing a “dangerous game”
by pushing for the federal government to intervene.
"There is no
role for government in 'managing' the iron ore market," the industry group
chief executive, Brendan Pearson, said in a statement.
He added a move like
that would give "a giant free kick" to Australia's competitors, such
as Brazil. “And one thing we know from commodity markets is that once given up,
market share is very difficult to win back."
However, Treasurer
Joe Hockey has backed Forrest’s call, saying he has some sympathy for him.
"I have a lot
of sympathy for the workers who are losing their jobs and I've got a lot of
sympathy for a number of companies that have suspended activities as a result
of the fall [in prices]," he told Financial Review.
Fortescue,
Australia's third biggest iron ore producer, is not an innocent victim in this
ongoing war. The company has also contributed to oversupply,recently ramping up production to 164 million tonnes a
year.
But at a dinner in
Shanghai earlier this year, Forrest said he was "absolutely happy” to cap
his production right away and that the other major players should do the same.
His comments granted him a probe by the Australian
Competition and Consumer Commission on whether he had breached cartel laws.
Source: metal.com