What came from MinRes’ AGM

Mineral Resources (MinRes) held its annual general meeting (AGM) on Thursday, coming soon after Chris Ellison’s historic tax evasion came to light.

In October, MinRes announced that an investigation into Ellison’s private tax affairs was being conducted, where various liabilities around the time of MinRes’ IPO in 2006 were not disclosed.

In 2021, Ellison made a voluntary disclosure to the ATO regarding income he had not initially disclosed from a British Virgin Islands company, Far East Equipment Holdings Limited, and paid $3.94 million in unpaid taxes.

As a result of the misconduct, Ellison will step down as MinRes managing director in the next 12-18 months and has incurred board-imposed financial penalties of $8.8 million due to the corporate governance and reputational issues created from his actions.

On Thursday, Ellison spoke for the first time publicly following the revelation, balancing remorse with pride in building MinRes into what it is today.

“I deeply regret the impact this (tax misconduct) has had on our business and our people,” he said.

“For 32 years, my focus has been on building a great Australian company. I am proud of the value I’ve created and the changes I’ve brought to the industry, and the return I have provided to MinRes shareholders.”

Ellison admitted he “made some mistakes” but also highlighted that he’d “built a great company” in MinRes.

Chair James McClements discussed MinRes’ path forward, where both Ellison and McClements will step down in due course.

MinRes has appointed an ethics and governance committee, which has since engaged Elizabeth Broderick & Co to conduct a confidential culture assessment into the company’s corporate governance.

“Beyond the ethics and governance committee, a new governance-focused internal function will also be established, reporting directly to the board,” McClements said.

“This function will be responsible for implementing compliance practices and processes, while also overseeing the company’s whistleblowing process.”

McClements highlighted the expertise of non-executive directors Denise McComish and Jacqui McGill in leading the ethics and governance committee.

He also steered attention back to MinRes operations, where the company has faced “commodity price pressure” in its commodities, iron ore and lithium.

McClements said MinRes has “responded quickly and appropriately to protect and ensure the long-term value of our projects” amid the price decline.

“The fast, nimble, entrepreneurial approach that has underpinned this company’s growth and success has continued – this time to keep our operations stable and preserve value until prices rebound,” he said.

“In a project sense, this approach is all about avoiding complacency, remaining focused on our balance sheet and actively managing our portfolio – this year unlocking up to $2.5 billion in capital.”