Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) acting chairman Belinda Gibson has made it clear that the ASIC will not take kindly to miners who are exaggerating the impact of the mining super tax (RSPT) on their projects. This statement came at the Stockbrokers Association of Australia's annual conference on Tuesday.
The mining industry has been labeling the new resources super profits tax as the bane of the industry. The tax is being opposed by most industry heads and is seen as industry unfriendly. However Ms Gibson made it clear that the company directors had to be more responsible about the continuous disclosures required by the stock exchange.
The directors were expected to make informed statements based on accurate facts. All the information needed to be studied to understand the impact that the new tax was likely to have before disclosing it to the public.
Rio Tinto was said to have "shelved" some projects but then Rio's iron ore boss Sam Walsh clarified that the projects were "on hold" till the ramifications of the RSPT were worked out. Cape Lambert Resources in Perth was also under the scanner for a statement which said drilling work had stopped because of the RSPT.
Clive Palmer was also admitting that perhaps he had exaggerated the effects of the RSPT on his projects. The issue of breaching rules of continuous disclosure would be dealt with properly as per Ms Gibson.