With the future of the new mining tax lying undecided, Fortescue has started lobbying the Australian Independent candidates. Andrew Forrest the Chief Executive of the Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. has met with some of the key independent MPs who could influence the fate of the mining tax on Thursday.
The political deadlock resulting from the August 21 general elections needs to be resolved before the mining tax in its present avatar can be passed. Both Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s Labor party and the Tony Abbott led conservative Liberal National coalition do not have sufficient seats to form government.
Andrew Forrest along with independent MP Rob Oakeshott called for a Summit to re examine the proposed mining tax which has already been changed once before. Independent MP Tony Windsor is also seen as one who will support this move.
Mr Forrest has been against the reworked mining tax which was negotiated by the mining majors with the Gillard government before the elections in the month of July. The reworked tax saw the tax rate drop to 30% from the original 40% when the scheme was known as the "mineral super profits tax".
The Minerals Resources Rent Tax, the reworked scheme is unacceptable to Fortescue metals in its current form. Forrest says that the new version of the tax favours the three big players, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata at the expense of the smaller miners.