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WA’s

Rich List2012

WESTBUSINESS SPECIAL MAGAZINETHURSDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2012

thewest.com.au2WA’s Rich List 2012

Like many on WA’s RichList this year and lastyear, Charles Bass hascopped a fair whack to his

wealth thanks to the falling ironore price.

Being a non-executive directorand significant shareholder iniron ore hopeful AquilaResources hasn’t helped softenhis exposure either.

As his more prominentassociate and fellow Rich Listmember Tony Poli would attest,this year has been a challengingone for Aquila.

Battles over the proposedAnketell port and raildevelopment and the growingquestion marks over theeconomics of its now $7 billioniron ore development — on topof the iron ore price — have seenits share price plummet thisyear, taking lots of Mr Bass’paper money with it.

The geologist made his first

fortune alongside Mr Poli atEagle Mining Corp in the 1990s.

Whether Aquila regains itsshine likely depends on whetherthe company can complete itsWest Pilbara iron ore project.

CharlesBass$140 million

IRON ORE, COAL,MANGANESE

Aquila Resources� See Tony Poli P20

50

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� Frank’s back 4.........................................................

� World view 17.........................................................

� Dearly departed 18.........................................................

� Caratti kids 21.........................................................

� A big win 23.........................................................

� Hancock heirs 24.........................................................

� Full list 30.........................................................

WA’s Rich ListNovember 1, 2012

Editor/researcher Neale Prior Production Rebecca Holland Cover design Andrew RichardsonReporters Kate Emery, Nick Evans,Daniel Hatch, Peter Kerr, Peter Klinger,Marissa Lague, Georgia Loney, KimMacdonald, Neale Prior, Nick Sas, SeanSmith, Rebecca Trigger, Peter WilliamsSources Dun & Bradstreet Company360, ASIC, Bloomberg, Iress, ASX, WASupreme Court, Landgate,nearmap.com.

Let the phone calls begin. Wedo not believe that GinaRinehart is the world’s

richest woman.Our iron lady is well short of

Walmart heiress Christy Waltonand family’s fortune, estimatedby Forbes at $US25.3 billion($24.4 billion).

The iron ore price has plungedmore than 30 per cent fromarguably unsustainable levelsabove $US180/tonne, makingsuggestions that Mrs Rinehart isworth almost $30 billion nowseem speculative, if not fanciful.

Also, the legacy of her latefather Lang Hancock has nowbeen carved up, theoretically atleast, among her four children.For the first time since WA’sRich List began, they areaccounted for separately underthe heading Hancock Heirs.

Estimating Mrs Rinehart’swealth was one of the toughesttasks compiling this year’s list.It was easiest to work out theworth of some members withfortunes based on listed shares.

We know of people probablyworth more than those on thislist, but whose wealth we havebeen unable to quantify.

There is a lot to be said foranonymous investment trusts,nominee companies andsyndicators like Nigel Satterleyand John Bond’s Primewest.

Neale PriorRich List editor

Our star nomatch forthe Waltons

$148 million

ENGINEERING, MININGSERVICES, PROPERTY

Monadelphous

Engineering andconstruction have beengood to John Rubino, buthis accomplishments

haven’t come easily.The man who was

instrumental in building two ofAustralia’s biggest contractingcompanies — UGL andMonadelphous — is animmigration success story morethan 45 years in the making.

Calogero Giovanni BattistaRubino arrived from Sicily in1966 as a 21-year-old who didn’tspeak English but had inheriteda head for business.

His break came insub-contracting on the Ord RiverDam project. He hooked up withfellow migrants John Trettel,Charlie Bontempo and SamCastelli and formed a businesswhich ultimately became UGL.

In the late 1980s, the companyacquired a stake inMonadelphous but not long after

it went into receivership.The partners set about

rescuing their investment.Monadelphous was revived but,like UGL, struggled during the

recession of the early 1990s.“The problems were deeper

than we all envisaged,” MrRubino said. “Our financialsituation was almostirretrievable.”

He became managing directorof Monadelphous in what wasplanned to be a temporary stintbut lasted 12 years.

He retains a 2 per cent stake.

JohnRubino

48

HarryXydasThis former refugee has

the WA constructionbusiness pretty wellcovered, from big to

medium, north to south.His Doric Group, which he

owns with longstandingbusiness partner Barry Osboine,focuses on big constructionprojects and has an impressivebody of work that includes theAlbany Entertainment Centre,the accommodation for the HopeDowns 4 iron ore project, thenew WA Institute of MedicalResearch, Burswood Holiday Innand city office buildings.

Jaxon Construction, which hisfamily bought last year out ofDoric Group, is focusing onmid-range projects.

Doric acquired Jaxon, then ahome and commercial builder,in 2005.

In his role as head of a groupthat has enjoyed profitsaveraging more than $13 million

a year over the past five years,the construction managementexpert has come a long waysince his arrival 29 years agofrom strife-torn Cyprus.

$145 million

CONSTRUCTION,ENGINEERING

PROPERTYDoric Group, Jaxon

Construction

49

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Frank Tomasi may haveturned 70 this year, butdon’t think he might beabout to step down from

the board of the contractingcompany he founded nearly 35years ago.

The Italian-born businessmangave up the reins as SouthernCross Electrical Engineeringchairman last year but has notimetable for a completedeparture.

“If you’re feeling good, themind’s clear, why stop,” he said.“And as long as other boardmembers are happy that I’mdoing my bit. One day theymight say: ‘Frank, you’re losingyour marbles’. Then I’ll knowit’s time to go.”

And despite the advice to thecontrary, Mr Tomasi also has noplans to sell down his 40 per centstake in the listed company.

It’s been the turnaround atSouthern Cross in the past yearand a resulting share price

surge that has seen him returnto the Rich List after droppingoff last year.

“At the moment, if I did sell it,I can’t see a better investmentthan Southern Cross Electrical,”he said.

“Down the track we willreassess it and see what’s bestnot only for the company, formyself but also for othershareholders. I don’t want to beselfish in this aspect.

“On the other hand I can domy own thinking. I don’t needothers to tell me.”

He arrived in Australia fromItaly as an 11-year-old whocouldn’t speak English.

As a teenager he got a BHPapprenticeship and later won ascholarship for an electricalengineering certificate.

He had been working withTransfield Services for a decadewhen he decided it was time to

start his own business. SouthernCross was launched with twoemployees.

Unlike many start-ups, MrTomasi didn’t mortgage hishouse or go deep into debt.

He was acting on the advice ofTransfield founder FrancoBelgiorno-Nettis. “He used tosay earn the money before youspend it. You can’t go wrong.”

The company grew steadily,and in the early 1980s was asked

to do a job in Ghana. It was aturning point, although MrTomasi didn’t realise at the time.“We went, you might say, in asense of adventure, not so muchto increase turnover,” he said.

It was the beginning ofSouthern Cross becoming aglobal contractor.

He has considerable propertyinvestments across WA,including Karridale’s OceansEstate vineyard and winery.

Growing grapes is a Tomasitradition going back to hisgrandfather’s day in Italy.

“At the moment having avineyard is like having a boat ora racehorse. It’s tough, but it’sgood fun.”

He has also been generouswith charities, most notablyTelethon Speech and Hearing.He puts that philanthropy downto the fact “you can only eat somuch and sleep in one bed”.

One other thing Mr Tomasiisn’t giving up soon is the sportof basketball. He continues toacquit himself on the courtalongside athletes up to 35 yearshis junior, participating just lastmonth in the Alice SpringsMasters Games.

FrankTomasi$150 million

CONTRACTING,PROPERTY, WINE

Southern Cross ElectricalEngineering,

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Ask the average person toname a WAbusinessman who spentmillions buying the

palatial home of a high-profilePerth identity and there is areasonable chance they couldcome up with the name ChrisEllison.

The Mineral Resourcesfounder made headlines in 2009when he paid a record $57.5million for Angela Bennett’sMosman Park mansion.

It says much about how MrEllison’s MinRes colleague SteveWyatt values his privacy that hestill remains very much belowthe radar outside mining circles,despite having splashed out onsimilarly high-profile digs lastyear.

In Mr Wyatt’s case, it was AlanBond’s former Dalkeith home,which he bought for $39 million.

Like Mr Ellison, Mr Wyatt’sascent to become one of thewealthiest people in Perth hasbeen inextricably linked toMinRes’s success.

In the 1990s, Mr Wyatt helpedMr Ellison co-found theCrushing Services Internationalbusiness that would later

become part of the modern dayMinRes, along with the PIHApipeline business and theProcess Minerals Internationalarm.

When MinRes floated in 2006at 90¢ a share, Mr Wyatt becamerich, along with Mr Ellison andMinRes co-founder BobGavranich.

More recently MinRes hasturned its hand to mining, withthe acquisition of iron ore andmanganese assets, but contracting is still far and awaythe company’s focus.

Mr Wyatt is an amateur racecar driver and has travelledoverseas to race Ferraris.

SteveWyatt $155 million

MINING, MINING SERVICES,

INVESTMENT,CONTRACTING

Mineral Resources, PIHA,Crushing Services

International � See Chris Ellison P22

45


With the exception ofcarbon offsetcompany C02 Group,Ian Trahar has taken

his business empire away fromthe scrutiny that comes with lifeon the stock exchange.

The corporate dealmakernever had a particularlyenjoyable public company life.

The one-time Citibank Statemanager was dumped from theboard of blinds maker Krestalast year amid a failed $47million takeover bid and afalling out with majorshareholder Hunter HallManagement.

His flagship company AvatarIndustries never quite lived upto expectations and trudgedalong for more than a decade inthe public eye until beingeffectively privatised by MrTrahar and former investmentbanker Paul Favretto in a $90million deal in late 2007.

The Avatar privatisation saw

Mr Trahar enter the globalfinancial crisis cashed up andready to ride the fiscal stormwith diverse interests.

He had bought the electricalgoods manufacturer, importerand wholesaler, Arlec Australia,

from Avatar in 2007. The group continues to be a

household name, as Australia’sbiggest provider of powerboards, electrical fittings,torches and security equipment.

Mr Trahar has worked onexpanding his privately heldRevesco Aviation luxury aircraftcharter business, which boasts afleet including a Cessna II 500Citation, Cessna 510 Mustang,Gulfstream IV and BombardierChallenger jets.

This business of burningmassive quantities of aviationfuel for wealthy business peopleand mining companies is offset,in a sense, by the carbon storageoperations of CO2 Group.

C02, which claims to beAustralia’s biggest developer ofcarbon sink forests, operatescarbon sequestration and offsetoperations for clients listed asincluding Qantas, Origin,Macquarie, Western Power,Newmont and Woodside.

IanTrahar$152 million

ELECTRICALEQUIPMENT, AVIATION,

CARBON CAPTURE,AQUACULTURE

Arlec, CO2 Group, Revesco Aviation

46

Education provided PeterLarsen with not only aprofession but also acomfortable retirement.

The professional educator,who has a string of degrees tohis name, is the second biggestindividual shareholder behindfellow Rich Lister Rod Jones inNavitas, the company theyco-founded in 1994.

Dr Larsen quit his executiveduties with Navitas five yearsago but remains a director.

Navitas shares have ridden aroller-coaster over the past 12months, dragged to a three-yearlow in February amid concernsabout falling overseasenrolments before recovering.

He also owns a swag ofproperties in Yallingup, notablyCape Lodge resort.

Dr Larsen takes pride inproviding education under afor-profit model withoutcompromising quality.

“We crossed the border intofor-profit education and took aserious risk with both ourpersonal finances and ourprofessional reputations, ” hehas said of his early Navitaswork.

PeterLarsen$165 million

EDUCATION, PROPERTY,TOURISM

Navitas, Cape Lodge� See Rod Jones P17

44Premium property: The Dalkeith house Mr Wyatt bought for $39 million.

43

Julian Walter has spent threedecades riding the highs,and some lows, of the State’shome building industry.

He broke off a 20-yearpartnership with Len Buckeridgein 2003 and founded his newoperation JWH Group.

While the bust-up could hardlyhave been tougher, the timingcould hardly have been better forthis classic car and aircraftenthusiast.

He established JWH Group justas the State was heading into amining and propertydevelopment boom.

It helped consolidate hisfledgling group as a major playerin WA home building, comingthird in housing starts behindABN Group and Mr Buckeridge’sBGC.

JWH has some of thebest-known brands in theindustry, including the RuralBuilding Company, Oswald

Homes and WA CountryBuilders. During the boom, healso began to build agriculturalinterests, starting with a 160hafarm at Donnybrook.

Mr Walter has made extensiveinvestments in agriculture nearKojonup and Donnybrook,

farming Angus cattle, premiumlamb, marron and orchards onaround 10,000ha of primeproperties. He is building hisCherylton brand as an up-marketsupplier of Angus cattle, lamb andmarron.

Mr Walter described theagricultural push as a bit of “safediversification” from his corebuilding business. He said he wasseeking to obtain economies ofscale with his farming operationsand was achieving high prices forits bulls and lambs.

“It is a commercial operationwhere we do things in a properbusinesslike manner,” he said.

This year, he unveiled plans for asubdivision of 10 rural lots onUpper Capel Road, Donnybrook,aimed at fly-in, fly-out workers.

Mr Walter said the homebuilding industry was currently alot quieter than a couple of yearsago, but still only about 15 per centbelow its five-year average.

JulianWalter$167 million

HOME BUILDING,FARMING, LIVESTOCK

BREEDINGJWH Group, Plunkett,Residential Attitudes,

Ceiling Force,Constructive Media,

Cherylton


www.garlandintl.com.au

Contact John Garland P: 08 9481 7157 M: 0418 923 347

E: [email protected]

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r� Subdivision potential offering significant returns

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‘Mambray Park’ Gidgegannup15 hectares (39 acres)

‘Maison de Campagne’ French style in an Australian rural setting

less than an hour to Perth

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PeterPrendiville


If things don’t go right for RonSayers over the next fewmonths, he could have thedistinction of being WA’s

second wealthiest inmate.And if it is any consolation in

this terrible scenario, Mr Sayerscould be well be sharing a cellwith WA’s wealthiest inmate.

The potential cellmate is PeterBartlett, a business associate andfriend of Mr Sayers who sits atnumber 35 on WA’s Rich List withan estimated fortune of $215million.

The two friends from theGoldfields face a Supreme Courttrial in February on charges thatthey conspired to defraud theCommonwealth of tax duringalleged dealings a decade ago.

They have pleaded not guilty tothe charges. Their allegedco-conspirator, accountantDeborah Jeanne Grace, is alsofighting the charge.

If found guilty, the allegedconspirators face up to 10 yearsjail and a certain end to theircorporate careers.

The good news is that theirbusiness empires could mostly

keep running in their absence,with Mr Sayers’ Ausdrill one ofthe top companies in the miningservices sector and Barminconow majority-owned by privateequity group Gresham.

The legal worst-case scenarioaside, the 60-year-old Mr Sayershas fixed a time to step down asmanaging director of Ausdrill.

Last year he told the board hewas ready to retire toconcentrate on racehorsebreeding at his Gidgegannup

property but claimed he wasconvinced to stick around untilmid-2014.

It won’t be the first time theKalgoorlie native has attemptedto give up the driver’s seat for hisbeloved horses. He tried it in1997, three years after Ausdrill,which he founded 25 years ago,went public.

Soon afterwards both MrSayers and Ausdrill sufferedsome serious health problems.The businessman had a stroke

and took 18 months to recover.The company got into

financial difficulty and had a“near death” experience. Thefounder came back in late 2000and things began to turn aroundat what is now an $800 millioncompany.

Mr Sayers famously defendedAusdrill in 2008 against a $400 million hostile takeover bidby Macmahon Holdings,spending tens of millions ofdollars of his own money to helpthwart the move. He now holds a12 per cent stake in Ausdrill.

The company’s Kalgoorlieorigins are humble. Mr Sayersset up the business in 1987 withone second-hand drill rig.

Golden Shamrock Minesbecame a partner when he saidAusdrill’s bank would no longeraccept his house as security.When the miner came underfinancial pressure, Ausdrill wasfloated on the AustralianSecurities Exchange.

Mr Bartlett is also a keyshareholder in Ausdrill.

This year, Mr Sayersattributed the company’ssuccess to its opportunisticnature. “That’s how we got towhere we are, by assessingopportunities when they arise,”he said.Neale Prior

RonSayers$175 million

MINING, DRILLING ANDCONTRACTING, HORSE

BREEDINGAusdrill, Yarradale Stud

� See Peter Bartlett P12

42

Peter Prendiville’s rise upthe pecking order of WA’shospitality industry wasrecognised this year

when he was appointedchairman of Tourism WA.

While the 58-year-old hasmaintained a low media profileover five decades in the pubbusiness, he has been ameticulous behind-the-scenesworker.

After helping to establishNotre Dame University in 1989,he remains a trustee and DeputyChancellor and this year joinedthe board of another Catholicinstitution — St John of GodHealth Care.

He has been involved in morethan 40 hotels in his career. Hiscurrent portfolio includes theHotel Rottnest, KarrathaInternational Hotel, TradewindsHotel in East Fremantle,Fremantle’s Pier 21 Apartments,the Norseman Eyre Motel andthe Balladonia Hotel Motel.

There is also the CottesloeBeach Hotel, which is

half-owned by a troubledinvestment scheme once linkedto Cottesloe financial plannerPaul Foster.

Mr Prendiville’s father Pat wasa leading Perth publican datingback to the 1950s, running hotelsincluding the Peninsula inMaylands and the Windsor inSouth Perth before commuting tothe State’s east to run theBalladonia pub and roadhouse.

His Garrett Hospitalitydiversified beyond WA this year

with the acquisition of the106-room Grand Hotel inTownsville for a reported priceof about $18 million.

In a rare insight into thecommercial thinking of thefamily group, Mr Prendiville’sson Garrett, told the TownsvilleBulletin their focus was on thecorporate market. This helpedexplain why the family businesschose a major regionalcommercial centre, rather thana tourism destination.

$180 million

HOTELS, SERVICEDAPARTMENTS,ROADHOUSES

Norseman Eyre Motel,Sandalford Wines, Hotel

Rottnest, KarrathaInternational Hotel,

Balladonia Hotel Motel 41The slow residential

property market hasshaved $24 million offHarry Hoffman’s

estimated wealth since lastyear’s Rich List but that isunlikely to trouble the84-year-old developer.

The Ardross Group ofCompanies boss is used to takinga long-term view on his projects— particularly where his 3000halandholding at Jurien Bay andCervantes is concerned.

Mr Hoffman, who also hasestates in Albany and Bunbury,has been in the propertydevelopment business in WA formore than five decades.

He founded Ardross Estates in1966 after eight years as a realestate agent.

With his wife Sylvia runningthe office while he concentratedon sales, the fledgling companycompleted subdivisions inCockburn, Canning andMundaring.

His is a real rags-to-riches taleof a self-made man.

Mr Hoffman is a survivor. In April 1944, like many other

Jews in German-occupiedEurope, Mr Hoffman was takenfrom his home and sent to theinfamous Auschwitzconcentration camp.

His mother and two sisterswere murdered in the camp.Only he and his father, a Czechsoldier, survived the atrocities.

HarryHoffman$186 million

PROPERTY AND LANDDEVELOPMENT

Ardross Estates,Beachridge Estate,

MillBridge, Hill View,Drover’s Retreat

40

FORBESBILLIONAIRESAUSTRALIANS29 Gina Rinehart $US18b

125 Ivan Glasenberg $US7.3b

173 Andrew Forrest $US5.8b

223 James Packer $US4.7b

242 Frank Lowy & family

$US4.4b

276 Harry Triguboff $US4b

358 John Gandel $US3.2b

546 Angela Bennett & Michael Wright

$US2.3b

601 Kerr Neilson $US2.1b

634 David Hains $US2b

634 Kerry Stokes $US2b

764 Paul Ramsay $US1.7b

804 Lindsay Fox $US1.6b

854 Stan Perron $US1.5b

913 Michael Hintze $US1.4b

960 Chris Wallin $US1.3b

1014 Len Buckeridge $US1.25b

1075 Solomon Lew $US1.1b

Source: Forbes, March 2012


Geoff Prosser reckons it’sall about confidence.

The commercialproperty tycoon is in

the midst of a massive expansionof his Eaton Fair shoppingcentre and says his 200-tenantBunbury Homemaker Centre isgoing “gangbusters”.

The former federal ministerand current WA Liberal Partypresident is often dubbed theKing of Bunbury because of hislongstanding commercialinterests in the South West city.

He still operates his flagshipcompany, Citygate Properties,out of a small office in the heartof his sprawling BunburyHomemaker Centre.

While Mr Prosser joviallydeclines to comment onestimates of his net worth, hescoffs at the notion of a retaildownturn.

“We’ve been exceptionallybusy,” he said.

“We’re finding our tenantshave not been generally affectedby the downturn.

“If you look at theunemployment rate, most peoplehave a job.

“I haven’t noticed a downturn— there is not a downturn. In

200 properties we only have twovacancies.”

Mr Prosser acknowledges thatreports of economic doom andgloom may have affectedconsumer confidence, despiteWA’s high employment rate andstrong growth figures.

He says the secret ofcommercial success is toreassure the customer that all iswell in the world.

“Whatever we do in life, we doon the basis on confidence,” hesaid. “People, when they spendhave to feel safe, secure and goodin themselves.

“Always keep the buildingslooking bright, always flattenthem when they are old. It’s likea shop that doesn’t do a refit —you walk in and a premiseslooks down-in-the-mouth anddaggy. You have to haveexcitement.”

Mr Prosser has also benefitedfrom the surge in young familiesin Bunbury. Cashed-up fly-in,fly-out workers are flocking totowns across the South West andare more than happy to spendtheir mining dollars at thehomemaker centre — arguablythe biggest in Australia — or athis shopping centre on

Bunbury’s outskirts. He agrees “absolutely” that

fly-in, fly-out workers are goodfor his business.

“The great thing with fly-in,fly-out is that when they docome back all the money comesback to them and theirfamilies,” he says.

“Even up in the FergusonValley where I live, the farm

next door is owned by a fly-in,fly-outer that works for Chevron.

“I talk to my tenants that dobedroom furniture and TVs andsay how is it going, and they saygreat, a bloke came in andbought the best of everything.

“People down here have NorthWest incomes on South Westcosts and lifestyles.”

Mr Prosser says the surge in

young families means the timeis right for a multimillion dollarexpansion of his shoppingcentre, a discount departmentstore, a second supermarket, anadditional 50 to 60 specialtyshops and cinema and foodoutlets.

“It’s about catering to theneed of the consumer, and theconsumer is my client’s client,”he said.

“I can only make money if mytenant is successful. You shouldalways step back so you don’tmiss the change that peoplewant and what is happeningaround you.”

GeoffProsser $197 million

PROPERTYINVESTMENT AND

DEVELOPMENT Citygate Properties,

Bunbury HomemakerCentre, Eaton Fair,Minninup Forum,

Leschenault Quays

38

Never mind the slump inthe retailing world, lifeseems to be as good asever in Alan Tribe’s

flat-pack paradise.The carpark at his giant IKEA

store at Innaloo is often not bigenough to accommodate thehordes of WA homemakers.

From frozen meatballs to thelatest in Stockholm chic, the64-year-old accountant sells it alland has been raking it in by themillions.

While his business is there forall to see in its blue and goldglory next to the MitchellFreeway, Mr Tribe has managedto lead a prosperous life out ofthe public eye.

He bought the WA IKEAfranchise with former businesspartner Stephen Curtis morethan a decade ago, when it wasoperating out of a smallshowroom on ScarboroughBeach Road, Osborne Park.

Mr Curtis left the franchise in2004, before Mr Tribe developedthe 27,000sqm Innaloo store andput the megaplex into aTribe-managed investmentvehicle — LEX Property Fund.

Mr Tribe has a 36 per centshare in the $120 million

building. His Cebas group alsohas the IKEA franchise in SouthAustralia and he is a directorand shareholder of the buildingmaterials group JasonWindows.

Before building his privatefortune with IKEA, Mr Tribewas in the public eye aschairman of the marineelectronics business Nautronix.

The company had a stint as amarket darling, before beingcaught up in patent battles andbeing taken over in 2002.

AlanTribe$202 million

RETAIL, BUILDINGMATERIALS, PROPERTY

IKEA, Jason Windows,LEX Property Fund

37After the demise of a $90

million deal earlier thisyear to sell herlandmark Esplanade

Hotel in Fremantle, it looks likeMarylyn New has finally naileda deal with John Bond’sPrimewest property syndicationgroup.

The $88.5 million Esplanadesale agreement, unveiled eightdays ago, marks the end of anera for the daughter of late WAindustrialist and Midland Brickfounder, Ric New.

Ms New bought the hotel in1991 for an estimated $12 millionand transformed it over hertwo-decade tenure.

Ms New said she had someregret leaving the hotel, but itwas “time to move on”. Sheplanned to invest in renewableenergy after a short holiday.

The investments would be“beyond the horse and buggystuff ” and would focus on the

development of newtechnologies in solar power andwind turbines, she said.

“I am extremely passionateabout this,” she said. “A lot ofthis technology has beensuppressed by governments infavour of dirty coal burning andthings like that, and I think theyreally need to look at thetechnology much closer.”

MarylynNew$190 million

PROPERTY,HOSPITALITY

Esplanade River Suites

39

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He got a very fat walletbuying and selling fastfood businesses,including Red Rooster,

and he is now a major player atthe healthier end of the dietaryspectrum.

Nick Tana arguably becamethe State’s biggesthorticulturalist in 1998 when hebought the trading name of thetroubled Sumich Group as wellas a host of valuable farmingassets and export facilities.

Combined with theestablished operations of hisNorth East Equity group, it gaveMr Tana control of a vast arrayof produce from the farm to theoverseas destinations.

Markets include Kuwait,Saudi Arabia, Spain, France,Malaysia, Brunei, Hong Kong,Singapore, Malaysia, Japan andhis native Italy.

The former Perth Glory ownerhas farms at Kwinana, Myalup,Gingin and Lancelin. Sumichprocesses olive oil at its farm inMoore River.

There is a good chance thecarrots you eat for dinner aregrown on Mr Tana’s fields.

NickTana$220 million

HORTICULTURE,MANAGEMENT,

EXPORT, OLIVE OILSumich, North East

Equity, Freshlink Export,nib Stadium

34


It takes a brave soul to sell andship sheep and cattle aroundthe Indian Ocean.

Besides piracy andfluctuations in rural produceprices, Mauro Balzarini’s WellardRural Export also contends withfood and livestock politics.

Never a favourite of animalrights activists, Wellard was oneof the cattle exporters hit by theFederal Government’s ban lastyear on cattle exports toIndonesia.

Then the company wasenmeshed in a battle withPakistani officials over ashipment of sheep that had beenrejected by Bahrain.

The incident increased callsfrom animal welfare activists fora ban or tighter regulations onthe live sheep and cattle exportindustry.

Live exports are a key part ofMr Balzarini’s empire, whichincludes cropping, animalbreeding, feedlots, propertyinvestments, livestock trading

and shipping. And amid thelatest crisis in September, heunveiled the acquisition of theBeaufort River Meats abattoir,about 20km from Wellard’s7800ha Kojonup livestock andgrain operation.

Mr Balzarini said theacquisition expanded the rangeWellard could offer clients,selecting animals that weresuitable for export and those bestfor local processing.

“We will now be able to service

markets that we are alreadyservicing with the live tradethroughout the world withprocessed and chilled meat aswell,” he said. “WA producerswill benefit from this certaintyand can take advantage of thatdual demand.”

The growers needing certaintyinclude Wellard itself, which lastyear owned almost 100,000 sheepand 20,000 head of cattle. On topof this, the group had more than3000 stud rams, as well as20,000ha of grain crops.

Mr Balzarini’s Dongaraoperations are centred on TheGrange, a prime 14,500haproperty acquired from the heirsof Multiplex founder JohnRoberts in 2010, in a reported $20million deal.

The 52-year-old naval architectis also chairman of his family’sBrescia-based shipping companySiba Ships, which was foundedby his father Emilio as he movedfrom butchering, to livestocktrading and ultimately shipping.

Siba has 30 ships and isinvolved in ship management,recycling and renewableenergies, and invests in themining sector and residentialand commercial properties,according to Bloomberg.

Wellard is developing its firstoffshore sheep feedlot operationin Saudi Arabia. It also hascattle breeding operations inIndonesia and the Philippines,with plans to expand from 2000head to up to 15,000 head by 2017.

Mr Balzarini said it was hopedthe company’s Saudi sheepfacility would be operationalaround April or June next year,with the capacity to handleimports of 350,000 to 400,000 headper annum.

Its expansion anddiversification plans wereboosted last year with a $100million-plus investment byBritish banking giant StandardChartered ahead of a possiblesharemarket float.

MauroBalzarini$210 million

FARMING, LIVESTOCKEXPORTS, SHIPPINGWellard Rural Exports,

Siba Ships, The Grange

36

Peter Bartlett’sconsiderable wealth isyet another example of afortune made from

having a go in the remoteterrain of this minerals-richState.

The son of legendaryGoldfields bookmaker MervBartlett, Peter joined WesternMining as a graduate miningengineer in 1974 and worked atits Windarra Nickel andLeinster Nickel operations.

The racing enthusiastfounded Barminco inCoolgardie in 1989. Thecompany won its firstunderground mining servicescontract six years later.

In a case of perfect timing, MrBartlett and his partners in 2007sold a majority stake inBarminco to private equitygroup Gresham, in a deal worthmore than $300 million.

Gresham’s effort to float thecompany last year was put onhold in a tricky equity market.His old mate Ron Sayers’ listedmining services companyAusdrill was interested inacquiring Barminco but deemed

the asking price too steep. Mr Bartlett remains a

shareholder in Barminco and anon-executive director.

He also holds a stake of near 6per cent in Ausdrill.

His private company FMRInvestments has mining,engineering, land developmentand property interests, as wellas a significant share portfolio.

His father’s son, Mr Bartlett isno stranger to the racetrack and

is known in WA racing circles asa fearless bookmaker unfazed bybets of $100,000 or more.

Along with Mr Sayers andanother investor, he had a 30 percent piece of the action withchampion WA racehorseNortherly.

But like Mr Sayers, he faces atrial in February next year onan alleged tax fraud conspiracy.

If found guilty, he faces up to10 years in jail.

PeterBartlett$215 million

MINING, BOOKMAKINGBarminco, Ausdrill

� See Ron Sayers P9

35





Airedale Downs

‘Airedale Downs’ Dandaragan1336 hectares (3300 acres) Showplace lifestyle holding with water the feature

r�5 kilometers of tree-lined Caren Caren Brook

r�Extensive views in a highly regarded location

r�2 hours north of Perth via Brand Highway

r�Livestock / cropping and intensive farming opportunity

r�4 bedroom cottage and outbuildings

$3.5 million

Bunker Bay – South West‘One of the few!’r�Northerly aspect with beach and ocean vista

r�Strata titled resort benefits with site

r�802 square metres of prime land

r�Waiting for the premier lifestyle home

$2.85 million

$2.9 million

Hadley on Henley

Bunker Bay


Hadley on Henley – Swan Valley3.2 hectares (7.9 acres) Circa 1860 restored Lieutenant Governor Irwin residence

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$240 million

HOME BUILDING,FINANCIAL SERVICES,

CONSTRUCTION ANDPROPERTY

ABN Group, Webb &Brown-Neaves, Dale

Alcock Homes, BoeingPlumbing, Ceiling

Solutions, ResolveFinance, BlueBay Finance,

Investor Assist

� See Garry Brown-Neaves P16

Most business peoplewho set up amortgagemanagement

business in early 2008 wouldprobably rue poor timing giventhe havoc the global financialcrisis wreaked on lendingbusinesses.

However, the usually modestDale Alcock describes as a“masterstroke” his decisionwith longstanding businesspartner Garry Brown-Neaves toset up BlueBay Finance withintheir ABN Group.

BlueBay takes wholesalefunds from lenders and loansare then offered by ABNGroup’s long-establishedfinance broking arm, RelianceFinance, often tofirst-homebuyers with highloan-to-value ratios.

“Between 2008 and 2012, it hasprovided our customers with aunique product,” he said. “Witha first-homeowner, if we canfinance the client we have abuild.

“If you can’t finance them,they remain renters.”

Over 25 years, Mr Alcock andMr Brown-Neaves have creatednot only the nation’ssecond-biggest home buildinggroup but a financial servicesoperation that, in Mr Alcock’s

words, “helps feed the machine”.Mr Alcock suggested last year

that the market was one of thetoughest he had experienced andthings have not since improved.

He believes that the GFC was agame changer. There were morebuilders in Perth “than youcould poke a stick at” andbuilding companies would haveto be innovative.

“We have to be really on ourgame to ensure we get themarket share we believe that wewarrant,” he said.

“It is tough but we have takena view that it will remain tough.

If you get better years, they are abonus — they are not the normgoing forward.”

Another move that wouldseem ill-timed was an expansioninto Melbourne, also kicked offas the GFC was starting to takehold.

It was an attempt to diversifyfrom what the partners saw asthe boom and bust,resources-driven WA economyinto a city with about double thepopulation of Perth.

In Victoria, they were takingon the established big brands.Mr Alcock said the group was

enjoying continual sales growthin Victoria.

“It is a market that offers us areally good counter to WesternAustralia,” he said. “Our view isthat if you picked two States inAustralia to operate, you can’tdo better that Victoria andWestern Australia.”

The ABN Group businessexpansions had been fundedfrom profits, making it notbeholden to banks.

When asked for tips to anyonestarting out life in business, MrAlcock said it was important tovalue relationships. Both he and

Mr Brown-Neaves are in longmarriages, and they have beenbusiness partners for 25 years.

“I think the respect and valuefor your private partners andyour business partners, andwhat each other brings to thetable, is absolute gold if you canget it right,” Mr Alcock said.

“You have to understandrelationships and your ownhealth is critical.

“You are playing the longgame. There are plenty ofoperators who have got a head ofsteam up and seem to have runinto a wall and exploded.”

DaleAlcock 30

33

$232 million

CATTLE STATIONS,BEEF EXPORTS

Bedford Downs, Lissadell,Lansdowne, Alroy Downs

32

Sterling Buntine had acentral role in the boomin station prices lastdecade, building an

empire across northernAustralia underpinned byleasing deals with rural schemeoperator Great Southern.

When Great Southernimploded in May 2009, he wasleft with about 3 millionhectares of cattle stations pluswhat is understood to have beensubstantial debts.

He has managed to survive thedownturn by selling stations inQueensland and the NorthernTerritory, waiting for up to threeyears for a deal rather than betorched in fire sales.

Entering tough times, he had acouple of things on his side.

He was anything but aJohnny-come-lately to the

industry after having inheritedproperties from his father Noel,a wealthy Northern Territorytrucking pioneer.

He enjoyed generous fees andincentive payments as GreatSouthern spread its flawedbusiness model from plantationsto livestock, then helpedreceivers McGrathNicol unravelthe Great Southern mess.

Industry veteran,Broome-based real estate agentGraeme Macarthur said MrBuntine ran his stationsfrugally. “He does not wastemoney,” he said.

His selldown of propertiesculminated earlier this yearwith the $32.5 million sale ofTanumbirini station in theNorthern Territory to theAustralian arm of UK-basedInsight Global Farmland Fund.

SterlingBuntine


NickGiorgetta$223 million

GOLD MINING, REALESTATE, COMMERCIAL

PROPERTYRegis Resources

This year Regis Resourceschairman Nick Giorgettabecame the hunter.

In his almost fourdecades in the Australian miningindustry, Mr Giorgetta built twosubstantial gold miningcompanies that were taken overby bigger peers.

In August, Regis unveiled a $150million scrip takeover ofMcPhillamys gold mine in NSW,which was owned by AlkaneResources and NewmontAustralia.

The acquisition capped off astellar year for Regis.

A key ingredient of MrGiorgetta’s repeated success hasbeen to take charge of processingplant construction.

One veteran said he built thebest plants in the business,tailored for a project’s metallurgy.

Picture: Ian Munro

The Finis have yet againbeen shown to have theMidas touch.

Adrian Fini, pictured,has just enjoyed a $55 millionwindfall from Japanese groupLion taking over Little WorldBeverages, the Fremantle-basedbrewer of Little Creatures beer.

In May, the family sold its FiniOlives estate and a half share inthe business to a Malaysiangroup for a reported figure of $15million. It was understood to beGingin’s biggest sale in 20 years.

The sales came 11 years afterthe family sold its Fini Grouphotels, residential andretirement village operation toMirvac for $35 million.

After the deal, the familymaintained and built itsproperty portfolio throughcompanies run by Adrian, hisbrother Don and their fatherTony. Family companies havesignificant land holdings inClaremont, Leederville and inInnaloo, around the Ikea site onEllen Stirling Boulevard.

The foundations for the familyempire were laid in 1957 whenTony started a residentialconstruction company eightyears after migrating toAustralia from Italy.

Adrian and Don werewelcomed into the familybusiness and helped make it amajor WA developer andproperty investor.

FiniFamily

$237 million

PROPERTYDEVELOPMENT,

INVESTMENTFabray, Finloy, Fini Olives

31

Stan Quinlivan, one ofPerth’s quieterhigh-flyers, likes to keepoff the publicity radar

and counts transport, hotels andproperty among his passions.

Known as the owner ofCottesloe’s Ocean Beach Hotel,Mr Quinlivan has made hisfortune from transport withSkippers Transport andSkippers Aviation.

Skippers Transport truckshave been a familiar sightaround Perth for decades andhis aviation interests are wellestablished.

He is one of the many peopleon WA’s Rich List list who arebeneficiaries of the State’sresources boom even if they arenot known for their mininginterests.

Skippers Aviation has 29regional turboprops and jetsthat operate regular transportflights as well as fly-in, fly-outcharters.

The fleet is worth more than$125 million.

The airline holds the contractto serve the inland towns ofMeekatharra, Wiluna, Laverton,Leinster, Leonora and MtMagnet.

Mr Quinlivan outmanoeuvredSkywest Airlines in the race forState Government-issued flightlicences last year by offering tooperate passenger services toKalbarri, Carnarvon and

Monkey Mia without subsidy.His business interests are all

privately held and involvefamily members.

His property interests includethe former Tilden Park Stud.

He sold his extensiveEsperance property a number ofyears ago.

Also sold was the GibbsPatterson homewares wholesalebusiness. The old GibsonPatterson site in Hasler Road,Osborne Park, was redevelopedas a business centre.

Mr Quinlivan says he is notinterested in retiring.

StanQuinlivan

$250 million

TRUCKING, AVIATIONAND PROPERTY

Skippers Transport,Skippers Aviation, Ocean

Beach Hotel, Tilden Park Stud

29Picture: Steve Ferrier

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thewest.com.auWA’s Rich List 2012 W

Garry Brown-Neaves ismore than happy to havehis business partnerDale Alcock as the face

of their ABN Group.The senior partner has

consistently maintained a lowpublic profile while building adiverse business empirefinancing and building homes, aswell as the commercialconstruction business PACT.

The ABN Group covers mostlevels of home building, from theentry level Homebuyers Centreto the high specification Webb &Brown-Neaves.

Mr Brown-Neaves establishedWebb & Brown-Neaves with hisformer busines partner JohnWebb in 1978, but probably madethe decision of a lifetime when hebacked a 26-year-old Mr Alcockinto Dale Alcock Homes in 1987.

The former bricklayer, whowas kicked out of ScarboroughSenior High School at age 14, isnow co-owner of WA’ssecond-biggest home buildinggroup behind BGC.

Despite thriving through the

rises and slumps of WA’s buildingsector, he has previously said hedid not view himself as a hugesuccess.

“It’s just opportunities havepresented themselves and we’vetaken them, ” he said.

“For us, it is about creating

companies that build qualityhousing, employing people andputting money back into thecommunity.”

Mr Alcock said neither he norMr Brown-Neaves knew whatthey were actually worth and“really don’t care”.

GarryBrown-Neaves$255 million

HOME BUILDING,FINANCIAL SERVICES,

ABN Group� See Dale Alcock P14

28

Peet has seen better years.In August, the housingestate developer scrappedits dividend after

unveiling a 76 per cent profit fallto $5.4 million.

While welcoming signs ofimprovement, chairman TonyLennon warns of another toughyear for balancing land releasesand tentative consumers.

“The difficult thing about anydownturn is that no one wants toring the bell and say we have anupturn until they see ithappening and until then it’sheavy going,” Mr Lennon said.

“Banks’ relationship toproperty has changed and that’sall part of the reason why peopleand business are so cautious.”

As Australia’s biggestresidential land syndicator, Peet is hoping demand fromsidelined consumers will helppull the residential market out ofthe trough it fell into during theglobal financial crisis.

After amassing a sizeablepersonal fortune and with aleisurely schedule that allows

him to travel extensively andreturn to Perth for boardmeetings, 70-year-old Mr Lennonhas not lost his respect for theinvestment appeal of homeownership or its emotional lure.

“Through all the years that I’veobserved property, it’s been avery good investment,” he said.

“For someone wanting to owntheir home today and not rent,it’s far more likely the value oftheir home will go up in thelong-term than stay where it isnow.”

Despite its size and longhistory in Australia’s residentialmarket, Peet still sees itself as animble player. “The company hascome through for 117 years andwe’re still in good shape and havethe potential to bring lots to themarket,” said Mr Lennon.

“We’re delivering very goodvalue and we are conscious of theneed to provide a range ofchoices for buyers. It’s importantthat we are ready to adapt, keepup with the trends and be atrendsetter as well.”Marissa Lague

TonyLennon

$257 million

LAND DEVELOPMENT,SYNDICATIONS

Peet

27

Danny Hill hasweathered a tough yearin the property marketwith a low debt, low

overheads business model.He has lived in Monaco for

almost a decade, but he has kepta close and trusted team ofexecutives in Perth to overseehis Australian interests.

It is a far cry from his earlydays in the WA miningexploration sector four decadesago when he was a hands-onexplorer and dealmaker, able tomix it with the big end of townbut arguably more comfortablewith the workers in Kalgoorlie’sfamous Palace Hotel.

The Belfast-bornbusinessman is renowned forhating pomp and pretence,famously falling out withRoderick Smith and describinga peer closely associated withthe company promoter as a“poncy English lord”.

Throughout the 1990s and intoearly last decade, he had asuccessful partnership withformer top Perth lawyer Hugh

McLernon that includedpioneering litigation funder IMF(Australia).

With a keen eye for marketopportunities, they made a pilein the floats of insurers AMP andSGIO and in Queenslandproperty investment.

Mr Hill retains a small stake inIMF plus Saracen MineralHoldings and Orion Equities.

His biggest WA asset is theCitibank office tower at thecorner of St Georges Terrace andBarrack Street, which remainshome to IMF and to hisAustralian management teamled by Stephen Spiers.

His Chardan DevelopmentGroup’s lucrative landdevelopment business insouth-east Queensland includesthe $800 million Sunshine Coveproject at Maroochydoore.

Mr Hill lives a life of healthysemi-retirement with his wifeCharlotte and their two childrenin Monaco, where he has helpedfund an advanced centre foratrial fibrillation at PrincessGrace Hospital.

DannyHill

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Picture: Mogens Johansen

$292 million

EDUCATION, PROPERTYNavitas, Perth Energy

� See Peter Larsen P6

25

$274 million

PROPERTY,INVESTMENT

Chardan DevelopmentGroup, Redsummer,

IMF (Australia), SaracenMineral Holdings

thewest.com.auWA’s Rich List 2012 17

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If last year was tough for RodJones’ listed educationprovider, Navitas, then thisyear has been “almost like a

perfect storm”. However, the company’s

64-year-old co-founder and chiefexecutive reckons the worst isover for Navitas after a toughcouple of years in whichenrolments of overseas studentswere hurt by uncertainty overthe global economy andgovernment and policy changes.

The fallout included reducedprofits and a slump in Navitas’share price which ate into MrJones’ wealth via his 14 per centholding in the company. However,the rejuvenated Navitas has sincerecovered the losses.

The 2008 Ernst & YoungEntrepreneur of the Year’s otherinterests include properties inPerth and the South West,including undeveloped sites atYallingup.

There are also some smallshareholdings, notably a stake inindependent power supplierPerth Energy.

RodJones

An icon of the automotiveindustry, John Hugheshas built a vast empireof dealerships from

scratch.At the age of 32 he was freshly

married, had just taken out amortgage on a house and wasworking as the general managerof a car yard. But something wasmissing.

“I used to wake up in themorning at 3am or 4amregularly with a knot in mygut,” Mr Hughes said.

“Had all the tests, couldn’tfind anything wrong but theknot in my gut persisted.”

One day, he saw anadvertisement that a servicestation at 196 Albany Highwaywas up for auction.

Convinced he couldn’tpossibly afford it, he missed theauction but couldn’t stophimself from contacting the realestate agent to check on theoutcome. It was still on themarket.

“I rang them up the next dayand made them an offer they

couldn’t possibly accept,” hesaid.

“Five per cent deposit in 60days, the balance to 10 per cent inanother 60 days and fullsettlement 90 days after that, Imean fairy-tale terms, theycouldn’t possibly accept it.”

“So I slept pretty well thatnight, and bugger me they rangme the next morning and said‘it’s yours’.

“The minute I’d made thatdecision, the minute I’d taken allthat responsibility, the minute I’dabsolutely totally committedmyself and put myself absolutelyat risk, the knot in my gut wentaway.

“That was my body telling me‘John — you’re not destined towork for other people’.”

Fast forward 45 years and hisbusinesses — car dealerships, aswell as side-line insurance andfinance companies thatcapitalise on flow-on business —are testament to that very firstpurchase being the rightdecision.

And business is booming. It’s

been a good year, he says. Arecord year. “This year’s firstthree months started offextremely well,” he said.

“People aren’t buying blocks ofland and building homes,therefore they’re buying cars.”

He says cheap finance andwell-priced cars have WestAustralians investing in orupgrading their wheels.

And the cashed-up bogans area small but important part of themarket, he said.

Mr Hughes also owns vasttracts of land, including half adisused golf course in Welshpool,and invests in a number ofproperties, including AustraliaPlace, with a syndicate includingJohn Bond.

He has also just invested in ahuge development in Success,which he hopes to release instages over the next four years orso.

He attributes his rapid rise to astrong desire for control over his

life and business ventures. “Did Iever really believe I would get asbig and as wealthy as I am now?No,” he confesses. “It’s just sheerhard work and total focus.”

At 76, he could easily step backand take a back seat in thebusiness but he still spends up to10 hours a day working in anunassuming demountable officeat the back of his dealership onShepperton Road.

There is something drivinghim to keep at it and he can’tenvisage retiring any time soon,he said.

“I was out to dinner recentlywith a couple we know, and shesaid to me, ‘John, why do youkeep doing what you’re doing,why do you keep working?” hesaid. “And I thought about it for aminute and this wasn’t a glib or asmart-arsed answer, I said ‘It’sbecause I want to be the verybest at what I do.’

“And there’s no arrogance inthat. I want to be the best cardealer in the world. Where doesit come from? I don’t know. It’s inyour genes, I suppose.”

JohnHughes $305 million

CAR SALES, SERVICEAND IMPORTING

John Hughes VictoriaPark, John Hughes

Warehouse, Park Ford, RV Centre

24Flashback: John Hughes in 2004

THE WORLD1 Carlos Slim Helu

& family $US69b

2 Bill Gates $US61b3 Warren Buffet $US44b4 Bernard Arnault $US41b5 Amancio Ortega $US37.5b6 Larry Ellison $US36b7 Eike Batista $US30b8 Stefan Persson $US26b9 Li Ka-shing $US25.5b

10 Karl Albrecht $US25.4b11 Christy Walton

& family$US25.3b

12 Charles Koch $US25b12 David Koch $US25b14 Sheldon Adelson $US24.9b15 Liliane Bettencourt $US24b16 Jim Walton $US23.7b17 Alice Walton $US23.3b18 S. Robson Walton $US23.1b19 Mukesh Ambani $US22.3b20 Michael Bloomberg $US22b

Source: Forbes (US),March 2012

BRITAIN1 Lakshmi Mittal

& family£12.7b

2 Alisher Usmanov £12.3b3 Roman Abramovich £9.5b4 Sri & Gopi Hinduja £8.6b5 Leonard Blavatnik £7.58b6 Ernesto &

Kirsty Bertarelli£7.4b

7 Duke of Westminster £7.35b8 David &

Simon Reuben£7.08b

9 John Fredriksen £6.6b10 Galen & George Weston £5.9b11 Charlene &

Michel Carvalho£5.49b

12 Hans Rausing & family £4.3b13 Joseph Lau £4.14b14 Nicky Oppenheimer £4.05b15 Kirsten & Jorn Rausing £3.9b16 Sir Richard Branson £3.41b17 Laurence &

Francois Gaff£3.3b

17 Sir Philip & Lady Green £3.3b19 Earl Cadogan & family £3.22b20 Sir Anthony Bamford

& family£3.15b

Source: The Sunday Times (UK),April 2012

GLOBAL WEALTH

23


The family has a vastnetwork that goes beyondWA into the Eastern Statesand overseas.

The sprawling and disparatelyowned empire stems from the GPKailis & Sons fish and chip shopin Barrack Street, a Perthlandmark until it closed in 1990.

George Palassis Kailis came toAustralia from the Greek island ofCastellorizio in 1914. Initiallyselling fish from a basket, hestarted working at the shop andeventually took it over. George’sfour sons — Peter, Theo, Michaeland Victor — all worked in thefamily business before branchingout. The latest addition is theTrigg Island Cafe, acquired byVictor and son George and tippedto be rebranded Kailis FishMarket Cafe.

KailisFamily$326 million

FISHING, FOODDISTRIBUTION,RESTAURANTS

Kailis Bros, NationalFisheries, Kailis Fish

Market Cafe

22

The dramatic $120 millionsell-down of his family’sholding in the car yardsbusiness founded by Vern

Wheatley’s father 60 years agowas one of the more surprisingWA transactions of the past year.

The sudden sale of the 16.3 percent stake in AutomotiveHoldings Group to its biggestlisted rival, AP Eagers, in July,blindsided AHG directors andreinforced suggestions of a fallingout between the Wheatleys andthe company.

The family has alreadypocketed $41.4 million in cashfrom the deal, with a second andfinal instalment of $47 milliondue in July next year.

Mr Wheatley retains 5 per centof AHG, Australia’s biggest cardealer with more than 120dealerships, including Big RockToyota, Nuford, ChellingworthMotors, Duncan Nissan and CityMotors Holden.

The holding has recently beenvalued around $40 million, giventhe solid performance of AHGshares. The family’s 6 per centstake in AP Eagers is worth asimilar amount. The family’swealth is also anchored by itsproperty portfolio, much of itcomprising AHG sites in WA.

VernWheatley

$330 million

CAR SALES, SERVICING,PROPERTY

AHG

21

Peter Meurs became richdeveloping theengineering servicespowerhouse

WorleyParsons, but his latestgig as development director atFortescue Metals Group haslikely eaten into his fortune.

He was the major participantin a $100 million purchase ofFortescue shares backed bycompany founder AndrewForrest.

Having bought at around $6last year, he would have felt thepain when the iron ore miner’sshares plunged recently amiddebt worries.

He is also a leader of theChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

The devout Mormon said in achurch video that the teachingsof Jesus informed good businesspractice.

“Principles like love another,

care for each other, I havetranslated into principles ofbusiness,” he said.

“So I think most successfulleaders in business help otherpeople to be successful.

“They work to strengthen and support others, and take responsibility for theiractions.”

PeterMeurs$310 million

RESOURCES,INVESTMENT

Fortescue Metals Group,WorleyParsons

� See Andrew Forrest P29 Thankfully this year has notbeen marred by thespectacular collapses that

came between our first editionof WA’s Rich List in 2010 and the2011 version.

Last year, we had to mourn thedeparture of 2010 Rich Listmember Pankaj Oswal after thecollapse of his BurrupFertilisers and fellow memberLuke Saraceni after Bankwestput receivers into his RaineSquare project.

Frank Tomasi also slipped outlast year after a fall in the shareprice of his flagship SouthernCross Electrical Engineering,but is a welcome returnee forthis year thanks to a stellarshare price rise.

This year’s departures aremore on the Tomasi line, andjust as likely to be back someday soon — assuming they havereally gone anywhere.

As accountant-turned prolificcompany backer Ian Middlemasonce said: “Unless it is realised,it is not real.”

Mr Middlemas was number 47in last year’s list with anestimated wealth of $150 million,this year he fell just outside the$140 million cut-off after a slip inour valuation of his sprawlingportfolio.

There is also no need to sendfood stamps to last year’snumber 50 Bob Gavranich, whohas dropped out because of a fallin the value of his holding inChris Ellison’s MineralResources.

He still has a nest egg biggerthan $120 million.

Veteran company promoterNik Zuks has dropped offbecause of a plunge in the valueof his London-listed playBellzone Mining, but he has anestimated worth of more than$100 million.

No need tomourndearlydeparted

Exit list: Luke Saraceni & Nik Zuks.

1 Gina Rinehart $29.17b2 Ivan Glasenberg $7.4b3 Frank Lowy $6.47b4 Andrew Forrest $5.89b5 Anthony Pratt & family $5.45b6 James Packer $5.21b7 Harry Triguboff $4.85b8 Clive Palmer $3.85b9 Chris Wallin $3.78b

10 John Gandel $3.35b

11 Kerry Stokes $2.79b12 David Hains & Family $2.2b13 Lang Walker $2.1b14 Kerr Neilson $2.08b15 Stan Perron $2.05b16 Angela Bennett $2.03b17 Len Buckeridge $2.01b18 Lindsay Fox $2.0b19 Paul Ramsay $1.66b20 Maurice Alter $1.5b

BRW RICH LIST AUSTRALIA Published May 2012


For a man who has built abusiness empire sellingthe great Australiandream, Nigel Satterley

paints a starkly realistic pictureof the WA housing market.

His new housing lot salesmight be 15 per cent to 20 percent up on last year, but they arestill well below the 15-year and30-year average. And they couldtake another 18 months to showa sustained recovery after theproperty market was hit by theglobal financial crisis more thanfour years ago.

“You are going to have a six orseven-year downturn (after theGFC),” Mr Satterley said.

There are clear signs of arecovery in popular suburbsbelow $550,000 and there is a bitof activity in the market up to$750,000 but prices remainsubdued in the $1 million-plusbracket.

But the six-decade veteran ofthe Perth property marketsounds anything but downcastas he outlines the state of hisindustry, seeing theenvironment as reinforcing theimportance of good propertyinvestment and developmentdiscipline.

Maintaining low levels of debt,keeping costs under control,

being competitive andcontrolling inventory and thepace of construction wascrucial.

“You get more skilled,” hesaid. “Your profit drops, marginsdrop and you have to adjustaccordingly.”

His Satterley Property Groupis the major developer ofhousing lots in WA, with at least25 per cent of the new lotmarket.

It works in joint ventures withdevelopment partners or in

syndications done with a list ofabout 50 wealthy clients and adozen institutional investors.

He understands whichinvestors would be keen on aparticular type of investment.“We know the things they likedoing — it is just a ring aroundon the phone,” he said.

This relationship-based modelhas allowed Mr Satterley to stickto his low debt rule, while alsogiving the Satterley team thechance to jump at investmentopportunities that pop up —particularly when markets gettough.

Relationships are part of hisother business interest, theSwansea Gallery in PeppermintGrove that he owns with his wifeDenise.

The View Street gallery hasbecome a major meeting place inthe western suburbs, hostingeverything from visits byschoolchildren fromunderprivileged areas to tastingnights for top Australian wines.

“We are collectors who have agallery business,” Mr Satterleysaid. “It is a commercialexercise, it makes a profit.

“People come to your houseand say ‘how do I get one ofthose’. So we might as well findthem one and sell them one.”

NigelSatterley$340 million

LAND DEVELOPMENT,SYNDICATIONS, REAL

ESTATE, ARTCOLLECTION, ART

GALLERY.Satterley Property Group,

Swansea Gallery

19Nigel Satterley and wife Denise Satterley. Picture: Steve Ferrier

This year has not beenkind to Aquila Resourcesboss Tony Poli.

The slowing of themining boom and cost escalationin the State’s north opened moredoubts about whether he cannegotiate debt funding for theWest Pilbara iron ore project.

Mr Poli’s wealth isinextricably linked to thefortunes of Aquila, which brieflymade him a paper billionaire in2008 before the global financialcrisis hit.

Aquila has been in a holdingpattern for much of the yearand, like many of its peers hit bya falling iron ore price, has seena slide in its share price.

Aquila owns half of the westPilbara project, one of thebiggest undeveloped iron oreprojects in the Pilbara.Construction of the port, railand mine project was slated tobegin this year. But slowprogress on State Governmentdecision-making as to who willwin the right to build the $2.5billion port side of the project atAnketell, and difficultynegotiating debt funding, haspushed project deadlines wellpast first projections.

Aquila recently added nearly30 per cent to West Pilbara’sprojected costs, revising itsbudget to $7.4 billion.

That, combined with the steepdecline in iron ore prices, hasplaced new hurdles in front ofthe accountant turned miner.

In July, Aquila closed a $430million deal to sell its share ofthe Isaac Plains coal mine in

Queensland, just ahead of thewidespread downturn incommodity prices.

The sale boosted its cashreserves to more than $500million — though that will beless than half of what Aquilaneeds to fund its equity portionof the Pilbara iron ore jointventure.Nick Evans

TonyPoli$360 million

IRON ORE, COAL, Aquila Resources

� See Charles Bass P2

17Rhonda Wyllie is much

more likely to be seen inthe social pages of thisnewspaper than the

business pages.Socialising in St Tropez with

Tom Jones, attending the TimMaguire exhibition at NigelSatterley’s Peppermint Groveart gallery and being a feature atcharity fundraisers are herpublic lot in life.

But she has a serious day jobas non-executive director ofWyllie Group, the company sheinherited control of when herhusband Bill died in 2006. Hisinvestment legacy property,shares and private equity.

Wyllie Group’s propertyinvestments included the PerthConvention Exhibition Centre,Sorrento Quay at Hillarys BoatHarbour, St Georges Square anda large commercial complex in

inner-city Melbourne.The heirs sold a half share in

St Georges Square to CharterHall Group for $61.5 million inOctober 2006, and thencapitalised on Perth’s strongoffice market in May by sellingthe other half for $96 million.

Mrs Wyllie said last year shewas looking at more propertyand blue-chip investmentsshares. “You have to ignore theshare price, not get frustratedand know what is happeningwith the business you areinvolved with, ” she said.

RhondaWyllie$335 million

PROPERTY, SHARES,PRIVATE EQUITY

Wyllie Group, SorrentoQuay, Amadeus Energy

20 Rhonda Wyllie, right, with PerthLord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi.

When they werechatting in PeterWright’s shop inSouth Guildford half

a century ago, it would havebeen hard for Mr Wright andMick Caratti to imagine thetrouble that success could bring.

The Hale School-educated MrWright was making a livingselling Connor Shea ploughs andtalking of enlisting the help ofAmerican shipping mogulDaniel K. Ludwig to unlock thePilbara’s iron ore.

Mr Caratti, an Italian childmigrant who had to go to workin his early teens after his fatherdied, was using Mr Wright’sploughs to clear farmlandaround Esperance for adevelopment syndicateinvolving the Rockefeller familyand Allen Chase of ChaseManhattan Bank.

Mr Wright would go on tomake his fortune from Pilbarairon ore royalties with his fellowOld Halean Lang Hancock.

Mr Caratti would build afortune from his earthmovingbusiness and buying farm anddevelopment land on his travelsthroughout the south of WA.

While their fortunes havebeen built on very differentfoundations, the families haveseen their share of difficultiescarving up their wealth throughsubsequent generations.

The fights of the Wrights andHancocks are well publicised,with the battles within therespective families, the bitterfalling out between GinaRinehart and three of herchildren, and the war betweenthe Wrights and Mrs Rinehart

over the Hope Downs andRhodes Ridge deposits regularlymaking headlines.

The two sons of the late MickCaratti, Aquinas College-educated John and Allen, arefighting a lower profile butequally complex legal battle inthe WA Supreme Court. At stakeis arguably more than half of afamily property empire withgross assets totalling well over$500 million.

On one reading, that familyempire includes the biggestholding of farmland in theEsperance district, with farmsin areas including SouthernCross, Marvel Loch andBullfinch districts. The fortuneincludes city office buildingsand significant holdings of landin Perth commercial andindustrial areas.

The agricultural land is leasedto farmers, including majorwheat grower John Nicoletti.

Significant parcels of land,including some of the primeEsperance holdings and cityoffice buildings, are held in thename of companies controlled byAllen Caratti’s second wife, TinaBazzo.

Allen and Tina Bazzo havebuilt those holdings over thepast decade and made big profitsfrom land development venturesin areas including Hocking,Southern River, Stirling andCanning Vale.

John claims in his legal actionthat the Bazzo land holdings areactually part of a familypartnership, which also includesproperties inherited when Mickdied in a car crash in 1992 andother subsequent purchases.

The defendants include AllenCaratti, Ms Bazzo, and Allen’sdaughters Nicole, Christina,Natalie and Alisha, as well asmore than 50 private companies.

The legal action is being

fought by Ms Bazzo and theAllen Caratti side of the family,who argue the investments areseparate from the Caratti familypartnership. The family of jailedland developer Kevin Pollock isseparately suing companieslinked to Allen over alleged jointventures last decade.

While the litigation lumbersthrough the courts, businessgoes on in a house divided.

Allen and Ms Bazzo overseetheir part of the business (ortheir separate assets, dependingon your point of view) from anoffice in East Perth, with Nicoleand Christina understood to alsowork in the family concern.

John Caratti works with hissons Michael and former racingcar drivers Nathan and Aaronfrom the Redcliffe office. Theywork on land developments thatare indisputably part of thefamily partnership, including anew Malaga Home Centre and a

major commercial developmentin Scarborough Beach Road,Osborne Park.

John’s daughter Rebecca livesin Sydney, working as ajournalist and style editor forVogue Australia.

Rebecca continues a link tothe Australian fashion industry.

Mick Caratti had a cousinnamed Carla Zampatti, whomigrated from the family’s hometown of Lovero, Lombardy.

Carla grew up to have dreamsof being a fashion designer andMick loaned her $10,000 to starther first major Sydney venture.

� In our estimate of the family’swealth, we have included assetsthat are held by companiescontrolled by Ms Bazzo butsubject to John’s legal action.This is not a reflection of themerit or otherwise of the action,but rather a matter of narrativeconvenience.

CarattiFamily$345 million

EARTHMOVING, LANDDEVELOPMENT,

PROPERTYINVESTMENT

Navarac, VenentianNominees, Gucce

Holdings

18 Caratti children:Rebecca, left;Nathan, above;Aaron, below;and Nicole, right.


thewest.com.au22WA’s Rich List 2012 W

The Raes might havecashed out of the Gullfuel importing andretailing operations here

in their home State, but they arecontinuing to fight the big guyson the other side of the Tasman.

The family is following afamiliar and successful patternwith their Gull New Zealandbusiness, investing inindependent petrol importingfacilities while trying todistinguish themselves from bigoil at a retail level.

After selling their WAoperations to Ausfuel two yearsago in a $500 million deal, thefamily of patriarch Fred Raehave both the cash and the nousto find holes in a lucrativeregional market.

The family has invested in afuel importing facility at MtMaunganui in New Zealand’scentral northern island and has40 outlets operating under theGull banner.

Gull has a fuel discountarrangement with majorsupermarket group Countdownand reports out of New Zealandindicate it regularly has pricesbelow its major rivals.

The Raes’ New Zealandgeneral manager Dave Bodgerlast month publicly accusedrivals of flagging, where theymove prices up and down hopingto send a signal about animpending price movement.

Gull New Zealand follows theold WA Gull rules of low costmanagement and carefullyplanned marketing.

Fred Rae, now 81, made the

move into move into petroleum36 years ago after a careerbuilding houses and grain silos.In 1984, he bought out hispartners in the then 35-outletoperation and built a propertyand retailing empire.

He retains significantproperty holdings, includingGull service station sites and theBunbury Tower office buildinghe bought from a BondCorporation subsidiary for $14.9million in 1990.

It is a genuine family concern,with the founder handing thereins of the Gull business to hisson Neil and son-in-law IanGreen in 2003.

RaeFamily$373 million

FUEL IMPORTING,RETAILING, PROPERTY

Gull New Zealand,Bunbury Tower

16

The success of MineralResources has madeco-founder Chris Ellisona very wealthy man.

For the media-shy Mr Ellison,who grew up in New Zealandand moved to Australia in the1970s, it has also had theless-welcome consequence ofthrusting him into the publicspotlight.

The brightness of thatspotlight intensified in 2009when Mr Ellison paid athen-Australian record $57.5million for iron ore heiressAngela Bennett’s formerMosman Park mansion, shortlyafter cashing in $54 million ofMinRes stock.

The sale saw Mr Ellison, untilthen a virtual unknown outsidemining circles, make headlinesacross the country.

This year Mr Ellison againattracted scrutiny when he sold more than $41 million ofstock in the contractor and ironore miner, which grew out ofthree separate businessesestablished in the 1990s andlisted on the AustralianSecurities Exchange at 90¢ ashare in July 2006.

It has since topped $13 a share,but has been hammered withother mining contractors in the

second half of 2012 as the glosscame off the sector.

Mr Ellison was not the onlyMinRes director to sell downover the past year on the back ofa bumper profit and a recordshare price. Managing director

Peter Wade sold $25 million ofshares, while non-executivedirectors Mark Dutton and Joe Ricciardo pocketed $6million and $5 millionrespectively.

Even with the sell-down, MrEllison is still the company’sbiggest shareholder, as well asits executive director.

He is also still often the firstinto the office in the morningand usually the last one out atnight.

ChrisEllison$396 million

MINING, MININGSERVICES,

INVESTMENT,CONTRACTING

Mineral Resources,Crushing Services

International, PIHA,Polaris Metals, Mesa

Minerals, Process MineralsInternational

15

Gordon Martin says hisflagship CoogeeChemicals business ison track for another

good year.“There are always challenges

but we have a number of capitalprojects on and we think ourgrandparents chose pretty wellin terms of locating themselvesin WA,” he said.

Coogee may have anchoreditself in WA, tapping the growthof the State’s booming miningsector, but the innovative groupnow has a significant presencein Queensland and Victoria andhas put down roots offshore.

Having begun life as a smallproducer of sulphate for farmersin 1971, it embarked on abreakneck expansion under MrMartin’s direction in the 1980sand 1990s.

Its chemical manufacturing

operations include a 25 per centstake in the award-winningAustralian Gold Reagents, whichproduces sodium cyanide.

It also makes a range ofchemicals from nearbywholly-owned facilities.

Coogee remains interested ina $US1 billion expansion ofAustralia’s only methanol plant.

GordonMartin$439 million

CHEMICALMANUFACTURING,

PROPERTY Coogee Chemicals

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2thewest.com.au

23WA’s Rich List 2012

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John Simpson’s Summit Groupseems to keep gettingstronger as it pushes its waythrough arguably a once-in-a-

lifetime downturn in the housingmarket.

The businessman, 82, and hisfamily are behind the Myaree-based Summit group, which hasoperations in the residentialproperty market ranging fromhome building to landdevelopment, building materialsand real estate sales.

Mr Simpson has maintained aremarkably low profile despitebeing a player in the Perthproperty sector since the 1950s.

The Simpson family have landdevelopment interests in theWaikiki, Baldivis and Rockinghamareas, as well as properties inDunsborough, Margaret River andOsborne Park and shops inRockingham and Subiaco.

JohnSimpson$460 million

HOME BUILDING, LANDAND PROPERTYDEVELOPMENT,

PROPERTYINVESTMENT

Summit Homes Group,Rockingham Park Group,

Corry Lyn

13

It is five years since Xstrataset the high-water mark inthe China-fuelled resourcesboom by agreeing to pay $3.1

billion cash for KerryHarmanis’ nickel producerJubilee Mines.

At the time, nickel was worthabout $US31,000 a tonne. Butwithin a year of the October 2007deal, the global financial crisishad forced nickel below$US10,000/t, and it has struggledto recover since. Today, the priceremains below $US20,000/t andXstrata has closed Jubilee’sflagship mine, Cosmos, in thenorthern Goldfields.

Whereas Xstrata hasstruggled, Mr Harmanis has notlooked back after pocketing $473million in 2007 for his 15.9 percent Jubilee stake.

Harmanis, who has acommitted spiritual life of daily

prayer, meditation and Tai Chi,spends close to half the yearaway from Perth, skiing inAspen, and surfing in Hawaii,where he owns property, ordown south at Wilyabrup.

Despite shunning thelimelight, Mr Harmanis is a bigsupporter of youth-focusedcharities, particular thosedevoted to preventing suicide.

KerryHarmanis$550 million

PROPERTY, SHAREINVESTMENT

Cottesloe Mews shoppingcentre, Talisman Mining

12

Prospector Mark Creasyequates investing injunior mining companiesto a punt on the

racetrack.“Every now and then someone

has a big win,” he said in arecent interview with The WestAustralian.

“Without those big wins, well,no one’s going to punt. But theexploration game is just that, it’sa punt. You do your best toreduce your possibility offailure, but failure is the norm.”

It appears — on paper at least— that the multimillionaire hashad better luck than most.

Born in Suffolk, he began hiscareer as a mining engineer inBroken Hill before moving toWA, and into prospecting, in thelate 1960s.

The punt proved valuablewhen, in the 1970s, he uneartheda 46-ounce gold nugget near MtMagnet.

But Mr Creasy’s reputation —and wealth — truly rocketedwhen he sold stakes in theJundee and Bronzewing golddeposits to Joseph Gutnick’sGreat Central Mines in a $173million cash and share deal inthe 1990s.

The sale made globalheadlines and confirmed Mr

Creasy as arguably Australia’smost famous prospector.

He put doubts about that titleto bed this year with hisinvolvement in a game-changingnickel-copper discovery calledNova.

It all started 33 years ago witha discovery of a different kind.

“In 1979 I went looking with afriend of mine for Skylabdebris,” he said.

“I got every single map I couldpossibly lay my hands onaccording to where the debrispath crossed, and that includedthe Norseman sheet.

“The explanatory notes in oneof the maps showed a jointventure by Newmont, WesternMining and Anglo where theydrilled nickel and coppersulphides in the southern part of

the Fraser Range through aprogram they started in 1965 andcanned in 1971.

“I thought: wow, these peoplehave made a mineralisedintersection, so the FraserRange must be prospective foreconomic nickel mineralisation.

“That was my firstinvolvement in considering thearea to be perspective. At thetime I didn’t do anything aboutit.

“But eventually I fired up anexploration program in theFraser Range to look for nickelin 1995. I thought let’s give it ago. Seventeen years later, herewe are today.”

In July this year a little-knowncompany called SiriusResources told the AustralianSecurities Exchange about some

maiden drilling results fromtenements in the Fraser Range,north-east of Noreseman.

At that point the companyhad a share price of 5.7¢ andwas valued at about $8.5million.

The discovery — consideredby some as heralding a newnickel province — triggered amarket frenzy which pushed thecompany’s share price up morethan 5000 per cent in twomonths.

Sirius is worth about half abillion dollars.

A scan of company documentsreveals Mr Creasy has both asignificant stake in the Novadiscovery (30 per cent), a biggerstake in Sirius (40 per cent) andmillions of options that havesuddenly come into the money.

Overall, the Nova discoveryhas been a more than $250million windfall for Mr Creasy -making him one of this year’sbiggest movers in the Rich List.

Although Mr Creasy did nothave a hands-on role in actuallymaking this year’s Novadiscovery, his foresight to pegthe ground in the mid-1990sindirectly led to Sirius’ windfall.

After years of unsuccessfulexploration in the region byvarious mining companies, in2010 Mr Creasy shook hands ona 30-70 joint venture with Sirius.

With the junior companyrunning out of money, theydecided to try their lack at theNova ground in July.

Mr Creasy is circumspectabout the success of SiriusResources and his wealth ingeneral.

“Two months ago I wasthinking to myself: well that wasa bloody waste of money,” hesaid, referring to Sirius’ laggingshare price over the past fewyears.

“Two months ago I was anidiot, now I’m a genius, andbeing a genius is a damn sightbetter than being an idiot, I cantell you.”

He holds stakes in about threedozen resources companies,with a focus on start-upexploration companies or juniorminers across a range ofcommodities, from iron ore tonickel and gold. Nick Sas

MarkCreasy$570 million

EXPLORATION,PROPERTY,

INVESTMENTYandal Investments,

Sirius Resources,Medusa Mining,

The CliffeFlashback: Mr Creasy sits on whatis believed to be part of Skylab.

thewest.com.au24WA’s Rich List 2012 W

Rich lists are sometimesaccused of being overlytheoretical documentsbased on estimations of

wealth which might never berealised.

That allegation may well betrue in the case of thegrandchildren of the lateprospecting legend LangleyGeorge Hancock.

John Hancock, Hope Welker,Bianca Rinehart and GiniaRinehart might be shown onpaper as being 23.8 per centowners of the HancockProspecting fortune.

Getting their hands on any ofthat wealth, which is guardedby their mother Gina Rinehart,is another thing.

The $975 million-plus ofestimated wealth of each ofthese Lang Hancock heirs iscontingent on any number oflegal hurdles which must beovercome before John, Hopeand Bianca can have any say inhow the family fortune isinvested, managed ordispersed.

Ginia has remained close toher mother and involved in thefamily business, but John,Hope and Bianca are estrangedfrom their mother and thefamily business empire.

The shares cannot be soldoutside the dysfunctional

Hancock and Rinehart familycircle.

While they wait for theirinheritance, the three spurnedchildren have splintered to fourdifferent parts of the globe.

John Hancock, who changedhis name via deed poll during anearlier blue, mostly lives inThailand with his wife and twodaughters.

He built his slice of paradisein the kingdom, in part, withproceeds from a heavilyconditional settlement and loansfrom Hancock Prospecting lastdecade.

It brought him momentarilyback into the fold of his mother,and he even took on amanagement role at Hancock totry to prove his mettle.

But after pitching numerousideas, he grew frustrated at the

constant roadblocks put in hisway.

The final straw, according toHancock insiders, was when hesuggested early last year thethen radical idea that thecompany should begin tradingin Chinese currency.

Andrew Forrest later threwhis weight behind the concept ina speech that made headlinesaround the globe.

Furious, John is said to havecut out the articles and shovedthem under his mother’s officedoor, before storming out.

Months later, the legal battlebegan.

But it wasn’t the first time thepair had come to blows over hiscareer.

At one stage John wasforbidden by his mother fromtaking on a senior role at

Fortescue Metals Group,according to sources close to MrForrest’s company. The lostopportunity ultimately cost himhundreds of millions in foregoneshare options.

He has now been forced toturn to day trading on the stockmarket to make ends meet, andis attempting to make hisbusiness mark with fledglingbuilding products companyFBM.

John’s siblings are alsostruggling, with the HancockProspecting financial tap firmlyturned off as the battle plays out.

Just weeks before the legalbattle erupted last year, Hopeemailed her mother requestingthat she be given three full-timestaff members, including abodyguard, at an annual cost ofbetween $130,000 and $380,000.

Soon after Hope again pleadedwith her mother to remain inthe US, saying she could not livein Australia or Singapore, whereMrs Rinehart was “selfishlypressuring me to move . . . justbecause you hate America”.

“It’s not fair on me to have tolive there and horribly unfairfor me to have to expose the kidsto that,” she wrote.

“It’s hard enough being a kid,let alone the peer pressure thatcomes from being the wealthiestone in the country.”

She said the whole worldbelieved Mrs Rinehart wasgoing to be wealthier than BillGates.

Bianca, once favoured to takethe reins of the company, has todate kept a low profile from herbase in Canada. Peter Kerr and Neale Prior

HancockHeirs$975 million (each)

HANCOCKPROSPECTING

Litigation, royalties, ironore mining, coal

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John Hancock,far left; Giniawith Gina lastyear, left;Bianca withGina, above;Hope in 2000,below.

Dig it up. Ship it out.That’s been the

enduring label placed onthe WA economy — and byassociation the cheap shot takenat the wealth generated by itsmoguls — for decades.

Yet that largely east coast viewis looking increasingly outdatedif the 2012 WA’s Rich List is anyguide.

Sure, iron ore has spawnedeye-watering generationalfortunes in the blink of an eyefor Andrew Forrest and GinaRinehart.

And they both remaincomfortably perched atop theirfellow moguls at the head of thelist, despite recent hits to theirvast wealth from falls in theprice of the key steelmakingingredient.

But from Len Buckeridge’sindustrial empire, to GordonMartin’s chemical-based pile,the Kailis family’s aquaculturerealm and engineering andeducation fortunes, the Rich Listproves the State is not aone-trick pony.

As if to underline the point,WA’s economy is in the middle ofan unprecedentedtransformation and grew by ashade under 16 per cent lastfinancial year — double that ofour biggest trading partnerChina.

Much of that is being drivenby an unparalleled investmentboom led by high-techremote-controlled expansions ofiron ore mines and one of thegreatest concentrations of newLNG plants the globe has seen.

John Nicolaou, the chiefeconomist at WA’s Chamber ofCommerce and Industry, saysthis trend is having positivespin-offs for the rest of theeconomy and is fuelling amaturing service-based industryclustered around resources.

Strikingly, this includesspurring sharp growth in theoft-maligned manufacturingindustry which, in WA at least,is shaking off the pressureafflicting its Eastern States’cousins that is coming fromthings such as a high dollar.

As traditional industries inthe east such as carmanufacturers wither on thevine and rely on FederalGovernment handouts tosurvive, the WA sector hasgrown by an average of more

than 5 per cent a year since2005-06, including the savagedownturn of the financial crisis.

Despite recent jitters sparkedby a cooling in the Chineseeconomy, to which WA’s fortunesare still heavily tethered, thefuture looks bright, according toMr Nicolaou, especially with apipeline of projects and alooming production boom toreplace the current investmentwave.

Yet he urges caution. “Labour shortages and cost

pressures impacting on businesscan damage our competitivenessover the longer term, and that issomething we have to be veryconscious of in this globallycompetitive environment,” MrNicolaou says. Peter Kerr

Mining vital but not only shot in WA locker

Red riches: Iron ore has driven thefortunes of many again this year.

4thewest.com.au


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Californian-born Jack Bendatseems to retain little passion forthe extravagant lifestyle thosewho possess vast wealth can

afford.At the age of 87, the one-time media

and retail mogul can afford to livequietly, inhabiting the top two floors ofan apartment block filled with tastefulart and offering exquisite views of theSwan River.

A philanthropist with much of hismoney invested in blue-chip stocks, hisenergies are focused on his belovedbasketball team, the Perth Wildcats, andgiving back to the community in hisadopted home.

But there’s a glint in his eye and aconfidence in his tone which belie hispopular image of a retiring gentlemaninvestor.

Arriving from the US in 1966, MrBendat bought and developed shoppingcentres with Kevin Merifield and KerryStokes.

He went on to engage in a series ofsuccessful partnerships with Mr Stokesin a range of radio and televisionbusinesses.

In 1997 he pocketed a tidy $100 millionafter selling radio stations PMFM andMix 94.5 to Austereo, while the 2002 saleof Mt Barker’s Goundrey and Fox Riverwineries earned him $62.5 million.

He has previously owned stakes inBurswood casino and West AustralianNewspapers, and south-west wineproducer Ferngrove.

The prominent entrepreneur hasdonated much time and money to helpthe sick and disadvantaged, and said thisyear he gave an estimated $2 million tocharity.

He runs Bendat Houses — placeswhere homeless youth live in a safeenvironment.

One of his most noteworthy

philanthropic bequests was a donation of$5 million to help establish the BendatFamily Comprehensive Cancer Centre in2004.

He also funds a range of scholarshipsfor disadvantaged youth.

“Wealthy people . . . they have a lot ofmoney in the bank and it accumulates,they never touch it, it just sits there,” hesaid.

“You can either have your money in abank, look at it . . . or you can give themoney to charity and still look at it.”

His other passion is the PerthWildcats, which he bought from AndrewVlahov in 2006.

“We’re rated this year as the numberone team to beat, the odds are all againstus because we’re so good,” he says.

The odds on the team are incrediblyshort because they invest in theirplayers, he says.

“We look good because the team wehave we’ve had for three years, we’re notchanging players every day,” heexplained. “We’ll do well, put yourmoney on it.”

He is fiercely attached to his adoptedhome, describing WA as “one of thegreatest places in the world”.

JackBendat$575 million

INVESTMENT, BASKETBALL, WINE

Perth Wildcats, Ferngrove

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26WA’s Rich List 2012 W

The apple never falls farfrom the tree.

For the heirs to thefortune of the late

Multiplex founder John Roberts,it means they’ve inherited aslice of their old man’sdeal-making ability.

While the Roberts brothersAndrew and Tim and sisterDenby had a bruising stint whenMultiplex was a listed operationfrom 2003 to 2007, they’ve madealmost every post a winner sinceselling to Canadian groupBrookfield for $1.2 billion.

With the $320 million individends paid to the trio whilethey were at the helm ofMultiplex, plus otherinvestments, they had at least$1.6 billion to burn just beforethe global financial crisis.

Savvy investments, includingin distressed property assets,since then have seen theirfortunes swell.

Andrew, the conservativeelder son and chief executive ofMultiplex through its four yearson the sharemarket, lives inSydney’s eastern suburbs.

To say that John Roberts’

children are merely heirs to afortune created by constructionmogul John understates the rolethe family played in diversifyingMultiplex.

Andrew gave an insight intothe workings of the family whenhe gave the keynote speech tograduates at the University ofNSW’s Australian GraduateSchool of Management.

He said that when hegraduated from the AGSM twodecades ago, Multiplex wassolely a construction contractor

that did not develop or own anyof the projects it built.

By the time it was sold toBrookfield, the bulk of theenterprise value was attributableto Multiplex’s work in propertydevelopment and investment, aswell as its facilities and fundsmanagement activities.

“Multiplex had transformedfrom a construction business to afully integrated property andfunds management business,” hesaid. “It was not however aflawless routine, and there weremany challenges and mucherrant footwork in thissignificant transformation of thebusiness.”

Andrew remains involved inbig-ticket property investmentthrough his 50 per cent-ownedinvestment company CorvalPartners, snapping up easternseaboard properties in the wakeof the global financial crisis

He last year vended a portfolioof hedge fund and otherinvestments into listed managerSignature Capital, in return for a15 per cent stake.

The family company RFCapital became a major

shareholder in MongolianResources last year.

RF Capital moved into onlineretailing by this year acquiringthe internet retailers Baby’s GotStyle, Thread People and My CatWalk.

Cottesloe-based Tim is a keenflyer, and his PerthAirport-based Avwest boasts twoBombardier Global Expresslong-range corporate jets.

One is maintained for use byAndrew Forrest who, like Timand their mutual friend James

Packer, is a key investor in MODResources.

Tim is also a director of MrPacker’s WA company which isbehind his Crown Perth casino,entertainment and hotelcomplex at Burswood.

� The sharp jump from lastyear’s estimated wealth of $1.2billion comes after we gaineda better understanding of thefamily’s investment modeland wealth generated fromMultiplex.

RobertsFamily$2.1 billion

PROPERTY, SHARES,AVIATION, LOGISTICS,

PRIVATE EQUITY,FUNDS MANAGEMENT,

E-COMMERCERF Capital, Avwest,

Corval, Thread People,Mongolian Resources

06

His father was draftedinto war in Austriawhen he was 14 beforebeing captured by

Italian forces and finallyemigrating to Australia shortlybefore the Great Depression.

About a decade later RalphSarich was born and raised on aBaskerville bush block duringWorld War II.

From these humblebeginnings, the 73-year-old hasturned the money he made fromhis revolutionary Orbitalengine into a billion-dollarproperty and technologyempire.

His son Peter is now thedriving force behind thebusiness but Mr Sarich keeps ahand in as chairman of thefamily’s flagship Cape Bouvardinvestment vehicle.

When the publicity-shy mogulspoke recently he declared hewas exiting residential propertyto rid himself of associatedbureaucratic headaches.

“Residential has become toomuch of a hassle,” he said at thetime. Given he’s picked the top ofthe market at least twice, thepronouncement would havecreated heartburn for someproperty moguls.

He surprised investors byselling out of Orbital EngineCorporation in the 1990s andmade a well-timed move intoproperty investment anddevelopment, where he has

made most of his fortune.With plenty of cash from

selling $527 million worth ofoffice towers before the globalfinancial crisis, Mr Sarich hasthe time and the means topursue his passion of technologydevelopment.

He has developed a windelectricity generation systemthat uses a series of movinghorizontal blades, as opposed tothe conventional propellersystem, although a plan for awind farm near Mandurah hasstalled amid complaints fromresidents.

It’s forced him set aside about$400 million for the venture.

Cape Bouvard’s majorproperty play is now the $400million-plus Settlers Coveresidential estates andapartments project at Noosa,while its WA projects haveincluded the Cevue apartmentdevelopment at Scarboroughand Lake Clifton marina projectnear Mandurah.

RalphSarich$1 billion

PROPERTY,INVESTMENT,

TECHNOLOGY, BOATDISTRIBUTION

Cape BouvardInvestments, Eagle Yachts

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Clockwise from top: Denby, Tim, Andrew and the late John Roberts.

The Wright family wouldnot have too look too farto know that the death ofa senior member can be a

time of great disruption andturmoil in a family business.

Yet the descendants of LangHancock’s late business partnerPeter Wright seemed to havepulled off at the least thestarting stage of transferring MrWright’s legacy to a thirdgeneration and potentiallybeyond.

The death of Peter Wright’s74-year-old son Michael Wrightin April was a time of greatpersonal mourning for thefamily, but was also used torestructure the board of themain family company WrightProspecting Pty Ltd.

Michael Wright’s sisterAngela Bennett, 67, steppeddown from the WrightProspecting board on the sameday that Michael’s 41-year-olddaughter Leonie Baldockreplaced him.

Mrs Bennett was replaced byWest Perth corporate adviserDavid McMahon, whose firmSirona Capital is an adviser toMrs Bennett’s private companyAMB Holdings on developing itsiron ore interests.

There is also a clear mix offamily and professionalexpertise at the new look WrightProspecting. Ms Baldock’s

alternative director is mountainclimber and former Bankwestexecutive Ed Bradley, while MrMcMahon’s potential stand-in isMrs Bennett’s son Paul.

While Wright Prospectingremains very much ajointly-held venture, MichaelWright and Angela Bennett beattheir own paths when it came toinvesting their respective sharesof the fortune in royalties thathave flowed from Rio Tinto’siron ore mines.

Mrs Bennett’s Sydney-basedinvestment firm AMB Capitalinvests in property, seed capital,private equity andinfrastructure ventures. Her

group owns AMB’s Double Bayheadquarters, the four-floorAngela House, and recently solda historic office building in KentStreet, Sydney, for $47 million.

Just as she recruited theexpertise of Mr McMahon toadvise and even help run theminerals side of her business,she has property industryveteran Joel McCann working asAMB Capital’s managingdirector and her son ToddBennett on the board.

Mr McCann is in turn helpingto oversee AMB Capital’s $30million investment in propertyfunds manager 360 Capital,which took over management ofthe Becton property trusts in2010. He brings high levelproperty management grunt toMrs Bennett’s foray into lowrental housing throughMelbourne-based real estatemanagement group ProvidenceHousing.

Michael Wright’s legacy ismore familiar to WestAustralians. He developed thescenic Voyager Estate winery atMargaret River. Michael’sdaughter Alexandra Burt hastaken the reins at Voyager,having been prepared for asenior role five years ago bycompleting a future leadersprogram. She is active on wineindustry and communitygroups.

Michael had planned foralmost two decades for his owndemise, putting in place asuccession plan and keeping hischildren up-to-date with thebusiness. “I’ve had a wonderfullife and it is time for me torecognise the need to hand overto the younger generation in aplanned and methodicalmanner,” he wrote to The WestAustralian in 2009.

He and Mrs Bennett hadalready settled a claim by thechildren of their brother JulianWright over what had once beenthe brother’s stake in WrightProspecting. The $68 millionsettlement confirmed Michaeland Mrs Bennett as half ownerseach of the family company.

Wright Prospecting’s mainasset is an estimated $100million-plus in iron oreroyalties, but it also has the

potential to one day be directlyinvolved in mining like GinaRinehart’s Hancock Prospecting.

The Wright family companymounted a successful legal claimagainst Hancock Prospecting forthe Rinehart’s company’s 25 percent stake in the giant RhodesRidge iron deposit. MrsRinehart has taken it to theCourt of Appeal and, ifunsuccessful, is expected tocontinue the battle in the HighCourt. If the Wright dynastyultimately triumphs at RhodesRidge, they will potentially havea joint venture with Rio Tintothat could see Peter Wright’sgrandchildren through to theirown retirements.

The more immediate issue isdealing with two separate claimsagainst Hancock Prospectingover the rich Hope Downs ironore mines.

Bennett&Wright$2 billion

IRON ORE, PROPERTYJoint:

Wright ProspectingAngela Bennett:

AMB Holdings, AMBCapital, 360 Capital,Providence Housing

Michael Wright’s heirs:Voyager Estate,

Voyager Enterprises 07

6thewest.com.au


Having a solid businessbuilt up over more thanhalf a century countswhen times are tough.

Mr Perron expanded hisshopping empire this year whenhe snapped up a half share inthree major Centro shoppingcentres, including Morley’sGalleria, for $690 million.

He built an empire on propertyinvestment and distributingToyotas, a relationship forged halfa century ago before Toyotasbecame top sellers.

His status as a majorbeneficiary of the State’s iron oreboom was confirmed this yearwhen he settled litigation againstHancock Prospecting and WrightProspecting for a bigger cut oftheir Pilbara iron ore royalties.

StanPerron$2.2 billion

PROPERTY,AUTOMOTIVE,

IRON ORE ROYALTIESPerron Group,

Prestige Motors

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68

When a billionairefrees up a big lick ofcash, the talkquickly turns to how

it is going to be reinvested.So it is with Kerry Stokes’

flagged sale of Seven GroupHoldings’ 23.3 per cent stake inpay-TV group ConsolidatedMedia to Rupert Murdoch’sNews Ltd.

The disposal will realise $500million for Seven, either torepay debt or fund another deal,while also tightening the group’sfocus on its core and lucrativeWesTrac heavy equipmentbusiness.

With the Seven free-to-airtelevision network and The WestAustralian now bundledtogether in Seven West Media,

Mr Stokes’ wealth is anchoredby his 68 per cent stake in SevenGroup, which generates nearly70 per cent of earnings fromexclusive Caterpillar franchisesin Australia and China.

His other interests embrace

one of Australia’s biggestprivately-owned art collectionsand extensive property holdings,including homes in Broome andSydney, WesTrac’s sprawlingSouth Guildford site and officesin Kings Park Road.

KerryStokes$2.3 billion

MINING EQUIPMENT,MEDIA, PROPERTY

Seven Group Holdings,WesTrac, Seven West

Media, Thinksmart, Iron Ore Holdings

04





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It’s impossible to keepAndrew Forrest down.

The many sceptics inAustralia’s investment

community tried, and faileddismally, as Forrest turnedFortescue Metals Group frompenny dreadful into anS&P-ASX 200 powerhouse in lessa decade.

And this year a campaign bythe nation’s corporate cop, theAustralian Securities &Investments Commission, to tryto rub him out from serving as adirector of companies failedwhen the High Court deniedthat the Fortescue founder hadmisled investors back in theminer’s formative stages in2004.

“For me, you must always findthe seed to an equal or greateropportunity out of any setbackor suffering,” Mr Forrest toldthe Sydney Morning Herald.“The past eight years (of ASIC’s

pursuit) has impaired even thetremendous progress thatFortescue has made forinvestors.”

Yet long-term investors inFortescue have little to beunhappy about, even thoughtheir journey has been anon-stop roller coaster.

Mr Forrest’s wealth hasmirrored that ride, courtesy ofhis 32.5 per cent stake in

Fortescue. Violent gyrations inFortescue’s share price, usuallydriven by changes to the ironore spot price or the perceivedeconomic outlook for China, theworld’s biggest buyer of Pilbarairon ore, has also played havocwith those keeping a keen eyeon Mr Forrest’s wealth.

At Fortescue’s 12-month shareprice high of $6.08, in March, MrForrest’s stake was worth $6.2billion. Fast forward toSeptember when the iron oreprice fell off a cliff andFortescue’s shares dropped to$2.97, and he was valued at $3billion. Not that Forrest hasever cared about the valuationof his Fortescue shares, otherthan in his role of Fortescue’sfounder, chairman and drivingspirit, which brings with it abelief that his miner continuesto be undervalued by thebroader market.

Just over a year since ceding

day-to-day control of Fortescueto his hand-picked successor aschief executive, Nev Power, MrForrest maintains a high profilebut usually on behalf of hismyriad philanthropic causes.

GenerationOne, which was

launched two years ago with theaim of ending indigenousdisadvantage within ageneration, continues to be hismajor focus.

But Mr Forrest and his wifeNicola earlier this year alsothrew their support behind WalkFree, a fledgling global initiativeto combat slavery. Add to thatsome high-profile donations toarts causes in WA and acontinued public battle withFederal Treasurer Wayne Swanand Forrest is rarely out of theheadlines for long.

On the day in October whenthe High Court ruled in hisfavour, however, Mr Forrest wasnowhere to be found. Fortescue’sfounder, who continues topolarise popular opinion butwhose achievements in iron orecannot be ignored, chose insteadto rejoice in private with hisfamily.Peter Klinger

AndrewForrest$3.7 billion

IRON OREFortescue Metals Group

� See Peter Meurs P18

02

Len Buckeridge has alwaysgone his own way.

The billionaire owner ofthe Buckeridge Group of

Companies has never been onefor hobnobbing with thein-crowd, even turning down aninvitation to meet QueenElizabeth during her Perth visitlast year.

Unlike many entrepreneurs,he claims to have no interest inmoney or material possessions.

So in the absence of any desirefor what some would deem “thegood life”, what exactly hascompelled Mr Buckeridge tostage his long-running fightagainst competitors, unions andevery level of government in thecourse of building his empireover the past 50 years?

“I just like doing things,” heexplains.

Mr Buckeridge, aged 76, stillgoes into the office a few times aweek so he can get on with thejob of getting things done.

His current projects includefinishing off the Arena stadiumon Wellington Street, which hedisparagingly refers to as the“squashed beer can.”

BGC is also building a numberof educational and health

facilities, and supplies buildingmaterials for projects across WA.

Mr Buckeridge’sdetermination to get on with thejob was evident recently when hewent back to the office withindays of being released fromhospital.

Mr Buckeridge makes nosecret of his disdain forbureaucracy.

It doesn’t take long for him tosteer any conversation into anascerbic attack on the “mentalpygmies” in charge of planning

at councils and LandCorp.He claims the bureaucrats are

intent on stifling the efforts ofthose who just want to get thingsdone.

His legendary temper wasonce aimed at certainconstruction unionists, thoughit’s been a long time since he’spersonally gone head to headwith any of his union foes.

In 1986 he lost his driver’slicence for driving his MercedesBenz through a caravan annexthat formed part of a unionpicket line outside a BGC site inCanning Vale.

Despite his personalambivalence to wealth, thecompany has allowed him togive his family the type ofcomfort that he never knew as achild.

His early life was spent inRivervale, where he and histhree siblings lived in a fibroshack after migrating fromEngland.

With the family finances tight,he grew up in patchedhand-me-down trousers and didnot get his first pair of shoesuntil high school.

Despite his ragamuffinappearance, he shone as a

student at the selective PerthModern School, where heshowed an aptitude for business— by brewing beer in theschool’s science labs.

He later studied architectureat Perth Tech and his final-yearthesis won the James Hardieprize. Titled The EconomicalHouse, it was an idea thatunderpins his philosophy thathome ownership is a democraticright.

He maintains a hand inbuilding design to this day,

priding himself as a qualifiedarchitect.

It has taken several years ofreporting on Mr Buckeridge tolearn — from third parties —that he makes some bigcharitable donations to rugbyand surf life saving clubs, andthat he has been a strongproponent of indigenousemployment in his companies.

Observers suspect there maybe more to his philanthropicendeavours, but Mr Buckeridgeis loath to reveal anything.

LenBuckeridge$2.4 billion

BUILDING MATERIALS,CONSTRUCTION, HOME

BUILDING BGC, Brikmakers,

Perceptions, Commodore Homes

03


It has been anothertumultuous year in thehistory of Australia’s richestwoman.

While the Pilbara mines thatunderpin her vast wealthcontinued to mint cash, GinaRinehart returned to the courtsto fight a bitter battle with threeof her four children.

The second half of the yearsaw a sharp drop in the price ofiron ore, but cash still pouredinto Mrs Rinehart’s familycoffers.

It came from royalties payableon mines founded on iron orediscoveries made by her father,Lang Hancock, and from a profitshare of her joint venture withRio Tinto in the Hope Downsmines.

WestBusiness estimates theHope Downs 1 mine deliveredover $1 billion in profits toHancock Prospecting lastfinancial year, and royaltiesfrom other mines deliveredmany millions on top of that.

The $1.6 billion Hope Downs 4mine, still under construction byproject operator Rio Tinto, willadd substantially to that cashflow when it is up and running.

Mrs Rinehart’s year wasmarred by a legal battle with herchildren. In September 2011John Hancock, Bianca Rinehartand Hope Rinehart Welkerbrought a suit against theirmother in the NSW SupremeCourt over her role as the headof a trust that controls 23 percent of the ordinary andpreference shares of HancockProspecting — the company thatcontrols much of the family’swealth. Mrs Rinehart wassupported by her youngestdaughter, Ginia.

After a six-month battle tokeep the details of the lawsuitsecret, including a trip to theHigh Court, in March the NSWSupreme Court refused tosuppress details of the bitterfamily dispute.

According to court documents,the multibillion-dollar HopeMargaret Hancock Trust wasdue to vest on September 6, 2011— the day Ginia Rinehartturned 25. Mrs Rinehart’sestranged children sought toremove her as the head of thattrust, accusing their mother ofsecret moves to change itsvesting date to July 1, 2068.

The release of the courtdocuments was a publicrelations disaster for MrsRinehart.

Her 14-year war over controlof the family assets with herstepmother, Rose Porteous, madeher contemptuous of the media,and court documents show sheinsisted her children signagreements preventing themmaking family disputes public.

That pact came to nothing,with her three eldest childrenaccusing their mother of“deceptive, manipulative anddisgraceful conduct” in heractions as their trustee.

In turn, in emails made publicthrough the court process, MrsRinehart said her children hadled “very privileged lives” andsuggested that “if they are nothappy they should go out andearn for themselves”.

In September, Mrs Rinehartallowed the trust to vest,inviting her estranged childrento claim their shares of thefamily company. Despiterumours of peace talks the courtcase continues.

The family disputeovershadowed the rest of MrsRinehart’s business dealings, as

she battled to cement her legacythrough construction of whatcould become one of thePilbara’s largest mines, the 55million tonne-a-year Roy Hillproject.

Last year, Roy Hill welcomedfour significant equity partners— Korea’s POSCO and STXCorp, Japanese conglomerateMarubeni and Taiwan’s ChinaSteel Corporation — which nowhold a combined 30 per centstake. But the port, rail andmine project is still to land theestimated $7 billion in debtfinancing it needs and thefamily battle cast enough doubtover the ownership structure ofthe project to slow downnegotiations with bankers.

More than $2 billion isunderstood to have already beenspent on the project.

But observers believe delays,combined with the recent sharpfalls in ore prices, have forcedMrs Rinehart to push back theexpected close of any debt dealuntil well into next year, almostcertainly meaning the mine willnot begin production until late2014 or beyond.

It was also a year in whichMrs Rinehart’s artistic

tendencies were revealed,courtesy of an act of publicpoetry. The poem, engraved on aplaque fixed to a 30-tonne ironore boulder at the CoventrySquare markets in Morley madenational and internationalnews.

Riffing on the themes ofpoverty, the Austrian school ofeconomics and the iron oresupply chain, Mrs Rinehart’spoem was seized on by mediaacross the globe. The first fewstanzas include the words:

The globe is sadly groaningwith debt, poverty and strife

And billions now are pleadingto enjoy a better life

Their hope lies with resourcesburied deep within the earth

And the enterprise and capitalwhich give each project worth

Is our future threatened withmassive debts run up by politicalhacks

Mrs Rinehart has become afavourite target of hacks and leftwingers spooked not only by herpublic statements on nationalaffairs, but also by heremergence as a significantmedia owner through stakes inTen Network and Fairfax Media.Nick Evans

GinaRinehart$12.4 billion

IRON ORE, COAL,MINERAL ROYALTIES

Hancock Prospecting� See Hancock Heirs P24,

Bennett & Wright P27

011976: Lang Hancock, Gina Rinehartand son John with Queenslandpremier Joh Bjelke-Petersen.

NAME WEALTH

1 Gina Rinehart $12.4b

2 Andrew Forrest $3.7b

3 Len Buckeridge $2.4b

4 Kerry Stokes $2.3b

5 Stan Perron $2.2b

6 Roberts Family $2.1b

7 Bennett & Wright $2.0b

8 Ralph Sarich $1.0b

9 Hancock Heirs $975m

10 Jack Bendat $575m

11 Mark Creasy $570m

12 Kerry Harmanis $550m

13 John Simpson $460m

14 Gordon Martin $439m

15 Chris Ellison $396m

16 Rae Family $373m

17 Tony Poli $360m

18 Caratti Family $345m

19 Nigel Satterley $340m

20 Rhonda Wyllie $335m

21 Vern Wheatley $330m

22 Kailis Family $326m

23 Peter Meurs $310m

24 John Hughes $305m

25 Rod Jones $292m

26 Danny Hill $274m

27 Tony Lennon $257m

28 Garry Brown-Neaves

$255m

29 Stan Quinlivan $250m

30 Dale Alcock $240m

31 Fini Family $237m

32 Sterling Buntine $232m

33 Nick Giorgetta $223m

34 Nick Tana $220m

35 Peter Bartlett $215m

36 Mauro Balzarini $210m

37 Alan Tribe $202m

38 Geoff Prosser $197m

39 Marylyn New $190m

40 Harry Hoffman $186m

41 Peter Prendiville $180m

42 Ron Sayers $175m

43 Julian Walter $167m

44 Peter Larsen $165m

45 Steve Wyatt $155m

46 Ian Trahar $152m

47 Frank Tomasi $150m

48 John Rubino $148m

49 Harry Xydas $145m

50 Charles Bass $140m

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