Australia’s richest person must share part of her mining fortunes, court rules

[AP Photo]

Australia’s richest woman, Gina Rinehart, has been ordered by a court to share part of her vast mining wealth after a years-long legal battle over one of the country’s most lucrative iron ore projects, according to BBC News.

The ruling caps a dispute stretching more than a decade, centred on the Hope Downs mine in Western Australia – a cornerstone of Rinehart’s fortune, estimated at about A$38 billion (£20 billion), the BBC reported.

Quoting the broadcaster, the court found that while Rinehart retains control of the mining rights, she “must pay past and future royalties” to rival heirs linked to her father’s former business partner. In effect, ownership stays put, but the cash flow now has to be shared.

At the heart of the case is a decades-old agreement between Rinehart’s father, iron ore pioneer Lang Hancock, and his partner Peter Wright. The two had set up a joint venture, Hanwright, to manage their mining interests in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.

During a 51-day trial in 2023, the BBC noted, Wright’s children argued that Rinehart had breached that agreement and owed them both royalties and rights tied to Hope Downs – one of Australia’s richest iron ore deposits.

Justice Jennifer Smith delivered what can only be described as a split verdict. As quoted by the BBC, she said: “Wright Prospecting won half of its case, lost half of its case, and Hancock Prospecting… has won and lost half of its case.” Translation: nobody walks away entirely happy, but nobody walks away empty-handed either.

The financial stakes are anything but trivial. Hope Downs, jointly operated by Rio Tinto and Hancock Prospecting, generated A$832 million in revenue for Rinehart’s company last year. Under the arrangement, Rio Tinto pays a 2.5% royalty – and the court ruled that half of that share belongs to the Wright family.

The dispute also pulled in Rinehart’s own children, Bianca Rinehart and John Hancock, who claimed their mother shifted valuable mining assets out of a family trust, effectively locking them out of the proceeds. They argued that their grandfather intended the wealth to be shared.

Rinehart’s legal team countered that she acted out of concern over past business dealings, while her children suggested the move was designed to limit claims from other family members, including Lang Hancock’s second wife, Rose Porteous.

On that front, the BBC reported, the court sided with Rinehart – rejecting her children’s claims to the mining rights. However, another family, linked to engineer Don Rhodes, did secure a partial victory in their claim for royalties.

Both sides claimed a measure of success after the ruling. Hancock Prospecting said the decision confirmed its ownership of Hope Downs and “firmly rejected” key claims against it. Meanwhile, Wright Prospecting said it was “pleased to finally receive a result in our favour,” according to BBC reporting.

The case underscores the long shadow of Australia’s mining boom – and how fortunes built in the Pilbara decades ago are still being fought over today. Even for a billionaire, it turns out, the real battle isn’t digging iron ore out of the ground. It’s deciding who gets a cut. MDT/BBC News