Maverick Australian mining entrepreneur (and member of Federal Parliament) Clive Palmer has lost a lengthy court battle to have China's CITIC removed as operator of Pil-bara iron ore port Cape Preston. Through his company Mineralogy, Palmer claimed CITIC's Sino Iron project had breached port operating agreements between the two companies. The action, which was thrown out by the Federal Court in mid-August, is just one of more than 40 legal battles between the two groups that followed what might euphemistically be described as a breakdown in relations. The court also ordered Mineralogy to cease termination notices issued to CITIC. CITIC Pacific originally purchased two Palmer companies, Sino Iron and Korean Steel, which held mining rights over extensive magnetite deposits in northwest Western Australia, in 2006. The Chinese group has since spent A$12B developing mines, processing plants, railways and the port of Cape Preston, in a project that has run billions over budget and years beyond its schedule.
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