Twiggy (31 page)

“Because he’s a man of action”: author interview with anonymous former Fortescue executive “B”, 2013.

“One thing I found annoying”: author
interview with anonymous former Fortescue executive “B”, 2013.

“If I was a little bit hesitant”: author interview with Philip Kirchlechner, 2012.

“He always thought he was right”: author interview with Philip Kirchlechner, 2012.

“a dispute over options”: Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Fortescue Metals Group Ltd [No 5] [2009] FCA 1586 (23 December 2009).

“Their desk would be suddenly empty”: author interview with anonymous former Fortescue executive “C”, 2012.

“That will bring you undone”: Mark Mentiplay, “FMG Fired by Vision and Empowerment”,
WA Business News
, 16 February 2006.

“Everyone told us we would never succeed”: author interview with David Mendelawitz, 2013.

“Nothing short of a miracle”: Russell Scrimshaw, quoted in “Never,
Ever Give Up”.

“It’s the end of five years’ hard work”: Andrew Burrell, “At Last, the Ship Comes in for Forrest”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 30 May 2008.

“It was Andrew, basically”: Paul Lampathakis, “Why Is Louise Happy?”
The Sunday Times
, 18 May 2008.

“Australian institutions accounted for a meagre 3.9 per cent”: Jennifer Hewett, “Aussie Investors Too Late in Boarding Twiggy’s
Pilbara Gravy Train”,
The Weekend Australian
, 1 December 2007.

“The company is building the most significant”: Drummond, “Forrest Fire”.

“I’m happy to be chained to the tracks”: Matt Chambers and Damon Kitney, “Fund Manager’s Railway Jibe Spurred Fortescue Founder On”,
The Australian
, 2 June 2011.

CHAPTER 10: THE GREAT ESCAPE

“If you think everything is crook in Tallarook”:
Michael Vaughan, “Between the Rocks and the Hard Places,
The Australian Financial Review
, 11 March 2009.

“I’m not such a great manager”: Mark Ludlow, “I’m Not a Good Manager; Forrest”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 21 June 2011.

“Forrest only chose that number”: author interview with anonymous former Fortescue executive “C”, 2012.

“Right now the focus needs to be”: Jamie Freed,
“Fortescue Unveils Aggressive Expansion”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 12 August 2010.

“his ‘severe exaggeration’”: Ian Cumming and Joseph Steinberg, letter to Leucadia shareholders, 25 June 2013.

“His personality dominated the FMG board”: Cumming and Steinberg, letter to Leucadia shareholders, 25 June 2013.

“I think it’s a great investment”: Sarah-Jane Tasker, “Forrest Puts
Money Where Mouth Is”,
The Australian
, 30 August 2012.

“Fortescue was in ‘great shape’”: Tasker, “Forrest Puts Money Where Mouth Is”.

“He [Forrest] builds iron ore mines on a vast scale”: Paul, “Twiggy’s Grand Bet”.

“Workers munched on sandwiches”: Jamie Freed, “Fortescue’s Near-Death Experience”,
The Australian Financial Review BOSS
magazine, 10 May 2013.

“I couldn’t even
say goodbye”: Rania Spooner, “Fortescue Tumult Continues as Secretary Resigns”,
The Age
, 6 September 2012.

“Of all our assets, the ones we value most”:
A Sense of Place
, p110.

“It was a very sad day for Fortescue”: author interview with anonymous former Fortescue executive “D”, 2013.

“I can’t tell you how well I am sleeping at night”: Matthew Stevens, “Twiggy Comes Out Swinging”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 8 September 2012.

“barbecues would be axed”: Stephen Bell, “Barbecues Get Chopped as Miner Fortescue Cuts the Fat”,
The Wall Street Journal
, 25 September 2012.

“
The main story on the front page”: Nick Evans, “Fortescue Sheds $1.5b as Debt Crisis Bites”,
The West Australian
, 14 September 2012.

“The disaster unfolding at Fortescue”: Adam Schwab, “Fortescue:
The Prophet and the Loss”,
Crikey
, 18 September 2012.

“describing it as ‘succulent’”: Leucadia National Corporation, annual report, 2011.

“Fortescue was willing to pay”: Stephen Shore, “Fortescue’s Great Escape”,
The Weekend Australian Financial Review
, 19–20 January 2013.

“He warned that Fortescue”: Stephen Shore, “Fortescue’s Great Escape”.

“Andrew Forrest is financially
secure once more”: John Durie, “Has Forrest Learned Debt Lesson?”
The Australian
, 18 September 2012.

“reports of my death”: Stevens, “Twiggy Comes Out Swinging”.

“It is safe to say that enterprise”: John Maynard Keynes,
The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money
, Macmillan for the Royal Economic Society, London, 1936.

“Forrest is hugely exposed to a single market”: author
interview with Philip Kirchlechner, 2013.

CHAPTER 11: CHINA CRISIS

“
He announced he was seeking a partnership”: Mark Drummond, “Forrest Seeks Hope Downs Partnership”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 19 July 2003.

“not something we are spending a lot of time”: James Chessell, “ConsMin Lends Ear to Forrest”,
The West Australian
, 21 July 2003.

“a move that would boost
Fortescue’s chances”: Chessell, “ConsMin Lends Ear to Forrest”.

“Graeme was stupid to buy shares”: author interview with anonymous former Fortescue executive “E”, 2013.

“It was not Fortescue’s intention”: “Fortescue Metals Group”, ASX statement, 27 April 2005.

“called on Forrest to resign”: Matthew Stevens, “Forrest Must Get the Chop”,
The Australian
, 3 March 2006.

“
the ban
would likely last”: Andrew Main, “Fortescue Stirs High Court’s Juices”,
The Australian
, 3 October 2011.

“You talk about a $1.85 billion project”: Elizabeth Sexton, “The Gilded Lily That Might Just Break a Forrest”,
The Sydney Morning Herald
, 21 February 2011.

“These commitments by Chinese interests”: media release, Fortescue Metals Group, 5 November 2004.

“Andrew Forrest has pulled
off”: Robin Bromby, “Forrest Pulls Off $1.8bn China Coup”,
The Weekend Australian
, 6 November 2004.

“We have no money”: witness statement of Wei Fisher, Federal Court of Australia, 21 April 2008.

“This is a very important project”: witness statement of Wei Fisher.

“when Andrew Forrest saw this fax”: witness statement of Wei Fisher.

“After lunch I was called” and “This is Graeme’s
decision”: witness statement of Wei Fisher.

“Chinese groups would not pursue the project”: Stephen Wyatt, “Doubts Hit Fortescue’s Iron Ore Project”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 24 March 2005.

“The ability of Mr Forrest”: Ian Howarth, “They’ve Twigged to Smooth-Talking Andrew Forrest”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 24 March 2005.

“Nobody knew anything about it”: Sean Cowan,
“Elliott Got $2m from Share Sales”,
The West Australian
, 4 March 2006.

“a negotiating ploy”: Nicolas Perpitch, “Chinese ‘Lesson’ on Fortescue Stake”,
The Australian
, 9 April 2009.

“the conviction was unrelated”: John Garnaut, “Corrupt Middleman Now in Beijing Jail”,
The Sydney Morning Herald
, 10 April 2009.

“No investor had complained”: Julie-Anne Sprague, “ASIC Case Artificial:
Myers”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 7 May 2009.

“ASIC’s case is an attack on my client”: Chalpat Sonti, “ASIC dispute ‘a lot of hot air’”,
The Age
, 7 May 2009.

“Forrest had not breached his duties”: Julie-Anne Sprague, “ASIC Case Artificial”.

“blunt commercial tactic”: Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Fortescue Metals Group Ltd [No 5] [2009] FCA 1586 (23 December
2009).

“China’s aim was to drive down”: Andrew Burrell, “Chinese Still Keen on Iron Ore Stake”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 1 May 2008.

“I have concluded that FMG’s and Forrest’s opinion”: Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Fortescue Metals Group Ltd [No 5] [2009] FCA 1586 (23 December 2009).

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank God”: Peter Klinger
& Peter Kerr, “Forrest Beats Dishonesty Charge after Long Battle”,
The West Australian
, 24 December 2009.

“We say the question is”: Elizabeth Sexton, “High Stakes: The Case against David Who Turned into a Goliath”,
The Sydney Morning Herald
, 3 December 2010.

“whether the prosecution of this case by ASIC”: Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Fortescue Metals Group Ltd [2011]
FCAFC 19 (18 February 2011).

“More likely than not, many traders lost”: Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Fortescue Metals Group Ltd [2011] FCAFC 19 (18 February 2011).

“mean and vengeful” and “It’s on the record”: Rachel Donkin, “Fortescue’s Chief Claims ASIC Out for Revenge”,
The West Australian
, 22 February 2011.

“Let’s just say people are looking at this decision”:
Andrew Burrell, “Leader of the FMG ‘family’ Unbowed”,
The Australian
, 26 February 2011.

“When you look at Fortescue”: “Forrest to Appeal Federal Court Decision”,
AAP
, 21 February 2011.

“I said, ‘We won, Andrew’”: Peter Huston, quoted in “Never, Ever Give Up”.

“Fortescue’s remarks were not directed”: Forrest v Australian Securities and Investments Commission [2012] HCA 39, 2 October
2012.

“everyone who is contemplating an investment”: Andrew Burrell, “Fortescue Case ‘Hurts Investors’”,
The Australian
, 4 October 2012.

“If remarks are made to the ASX”: Patrick Durkin, Hannah Low & Ayesha de Kretser, “China Hype: High Court Backs Forrest”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 2 October 2012.

“The majority decision shows some keen commercial insight”: Durkin, Low &
de Kretser, “China Hype”.

“Compliance with continuous disclosure”: ASIC, media release, 2 October 2012.

“Everyone saw straight through those Chinese”: Forrest, quoted in “Never, Ever Give Up”.

“create an environment where globally”: Andrew Forrest, doorstop interview, 14 November 2012.

“just another Australian concerned”: Elizabeth Knight, “Forrest Grabs a New Cause”,
The Sydney
Morning Herald
, 6 October 2012.

“Andrew gilds the lily”: author interview with anonymous friend of Andrew Forrest, 2012.

“Seventy per cent of what he says”: author interview with anonymous former Fortescue executive “D”, 2013.

“He’s such a good salesman”: author interview with David Mendelawitz, 2013.

“I know what a lot of people have said”: author interview with Rodney Adler,
2013.

“When you start with nothing”: author interview with Rodney Adler, 2013.

CHAPTER 12: TAXING TIMES

Much of the information in this chapter is taken from the author’s off-the-record interviews with key participants in the mining tax debate.

“I really don’t enjoy the spotlight” and “I don’t want to look as if I am out there”: Stewart, “The Accidental Billionaire”.

“Swan had not delivered”: Maxine McKew,
Tales from the Political Trenches
, Melbourne University Publishing, Carlton, Vic, pp180-181.

“The combined expertise of Gray”: McKew,
Tales from the Political Trenches
, p182.

“I rang the treasurer three times”: Paul Kelly, “Rescue Arrived Too Late”,
The Australian
, 18 April 2012.

“It showed we would have a negative cash flow”: Kelly, “Rescue
Arrived Too Late”.

“I’m out there employing thousands of people”:
Inside Business
, ABC TV, 9 June 2010.

“paying a dollar more in tax”: Joe Spagnolo, “PM Hangs Up Hotline”,
The Sunday Times
, 6 June 2010.

“I’m very happy to pay tax”: “Fortescue Chief Sees Deal on Mining Tax”,
AAP
, 27 June 2010.

“John Forrest was determined to ensure”: Robert Taylor, “Billionaires, Workers Rail
against New Tax”,
The West Australian
, 10 June 2010.

“I have a prime minister who is listening”: David Crowe, “PM’s Listening: Forrest”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 11 June 2010.

“FMG would pay very little”: Treasury briefing by Scott Bartley, 23 June 2010.

“while a headline rate of 40 per cent”: Kelly, “Rescue Arrived Too Late”.

“Fortescue would not sign any separate
agreement”: Jennifer Hewett, “Opportunity Lost to Build Australia”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 18 April 2012.

“all of the companies were not at the table”: Andrew Burrell, “Miners Angry at Forrest ‘Rudd Pact’”,
The Australian
, 1 July 2010.

“What is good for FMG”: Burrell, “Miners Angry at Forrest ‘Rudd Pact’”.

“We didn’t realise that BHP and Rio”: Kelly, “Rescue Arrived Too
Late”.

“Fortescue would ‘carry the burden’”: “Fortescue Dismisses MRRT Draft Legislation”, media release, 13 June 2011.

“It was a really gruelling time for Andrew”: author interview with anonymous friend of Andrew Forrest, 2013.

“irresponsible economic management”: Andrew Burrell, “Resources Tax Could Be Buried by Result”,
The Australian
, 23 August 2010.

“My heart doesn’t break
for Fortescue”: Jennifer Hewett, “Twiggy Delivers Rebuke to Kloppers”,
The Australian
, 22 September 2010.

“threat to democracy”: Wayne Swan, “The 0.01 Per Cent: The Rising Influence of Vested Interests in Australia”,
The Monthly
, March 2012.

“I fear Australia’s extraordinary success”: Swan, “The 0.01 Per Cent”.

“The average punter only gets to vote”:
Lateline
, ABC TV, 5 March 2012.

“I hardly think that Twiggy Forrest”: Patrick Durkin & Michael Smith, “Swan ‘playing man, rather than ball’”,
The Australian Financial Review
, 6 March 2012.