Australia relents on ’super tax’ on mineral company profits, aims for smaller resource tax

Australia relents on contentious mining profit tax

CANBERRA, Australia — Australia’s government on Friday retreated from a planned 40 percent tax on booming profits in the mining industry, defusing a damaging row with big business and clearing the way for national elections to be called at any time.

Mining companies had campaigned mightily against the proposed tax, and it was a key factor in the sudden ouster of Kevin Rudd as prime minister after he refused to negotiate. Friday’s announcement from new Prime Minister Julia Gillard effectively removes the issue from the political agenda.

Opinion polls showed an immediate boost for the ruling Labor Party when Gillard took office, and she may choose to capitalize on that popularity by calling elections as soon as this weekend that could be held in August. Elections must be called by year’s end.

“The breakthrough agreement keeps faith with our central goal from day one: to deliver a better return for the Australian people for the resources they own and which can only be dug up once,” Gillard said.

The new deal replaces a so-called “super profits tax” of 40 percent with a profits-based minerals resource rent tax of 30 percent. The new plan shaves Australian dollars 1.5 billion ($1.27 billion) in extra tax revenue off the original plan, to about AU$10.5 billion from about AU$12 billion.

The new tax will apply only to the 320 biggest miners, down from the 2,500 that fell under the original tax proposal.

And it will apply only to iron ore and coal — Australia’s biggest exports, while exempting metals that generally reap lower profits, such as nickel, gold, copper and uranium.

The regime, which will replace a state-by-state royalty system, is due to start in 2012 if Parliament passes enabling legislation.

The new resources tax will reduce revenues by an estimated Australian dollars 1.5 billion ($1.27 billion) over four years compared to the previous proposal of AU$9 billion.

To offset the loss in revenue, the government will reduce the broader company tax rate to 29 percent from 30 percent, instead of 28 percent as originally planned — and keep its goal of bringing the budget back into surplus by 2013.

As profits surged on the back of demand for Australian resources, mining companies have recognized that they may have to pay higher taxes. But they strongly opposed key elements of Rudd’s plan including the headline rate.

In a joint statement, top miners BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata on Thursday welcomed the new scheme.

“The companies agree that the proposal presented by the Government represents very significant progress towards a minerals taxation regime that satisfies the industry’s core principles,” the statement said.

BHP Billiton’s share price climbed about 1 percent to AU$37.41 after the announcement; Rio Tinto shares rose more than 1.3 percent to AU$65.97.

The deal so far is broad, and Gillard said former BHP Billiton chairman Don Argus and Resources Minister Martin Ferguson had been appointed to a committee to hammer out the details.

Rudd proposed the big tax rise to capitalize on the revenue mining companies have raked in from burgeoning Chinese and Indian demand for Australia’s minerals and energy resources.

Mining companies warned it would cost jobs and investment even as the industry’s boom had helped keep Australia out of recession during the global economic crisis.