• Lawyers in Sydney
• Lawyers in Melbourne
• Lawyers in Brisbane
• Lawyers in Perth
• Family lawyers
• Employment lawyers
• Criminal lawyers
• Wills and estates lawyers
• Find a lawyer

(3) Without limiting or otherwise affecting the application of the Government Agreements Act 1979, the Agreement shall operate and take effect notwithstanding any other Act or law.

(4) To avoid doubt, it is declared that the provisions of the Public Works Act 1902 section 96 do not apply to a railway constructed under the Agreement.

[Section 4 amended: No. 61 of 2010 s. 17; No. 61 of 2011 s. 17; No. 38 of 2024 s. 16.]

5. State empowered under clause 15C(9)(a)

The State has power in accordance with clause 15C(9)(a) of the Agreement.

[Section 5 inserted: No. 61 of 2010 s. 18.]

Schedule 1 — Iron Ore (Hope Downs) Agreement

[s. 3]

[Heading amended: No. 19 of 2010 s. 4; No. 61 of 2010 s. 19.]

THIS AGREEMENT is made this 30th day of November 1992

B E T W E E N:

THE HONOURABLE CARMEN MARY LAWRENCE, B.Psych., Ph.D., M.L.A., Premier of the State of Western Australia, acting for and on behalf of the said State and its instrumentalities from time to time (hereinafter called “the State”) of the one part and

HOPE DOWNS LIMITED ACN 057 326 815 a company incorporated in the State of Western Australia and having its registered office at Third Floor, 28‑42 Ventnor Avenue, West Perth (hereinafter called “the Company” in which term shall be included its successors and permitted assigns) of the other part.

W H E R E A S:

(a) the Company is or is entitled pursuant to transfers to be the holder of mining tenements comprising Areas A, B and C (as hereinafter defined) within which iron ore of tonneages and grades sufficient to warrant economic recovery and marketing have been established;

(b) the Company wishes to develop a project for the mining, transportation and sale, either within Australia or by export to overseas purchasers, of iron ore from the said Areas with an initial production of up to 15,000,000 tonnes of iron ore per annum; and

(c) the State and Company have agreed to enter into this Agreement for the purpose of assisting the establishment of the proposed project and providing a framework for managing future changes to the project.

NOW THIS AGREEMENT WITNESSES:

Definitions

1. In this Agreement subject to the context —

   “accommodation area” means an area or areas on or in the vicinity of the mining lease for accommodation and ancillary facilities for the mine camp workforce;

“advise”, “apply”, “approve”, “approval”, “consent”, “certify”, “direct”, “disclose”, “notify”, “request”, or “require”, means advise, apply, approve, approval, consent, certify, direct, disclose, notify, request, or require in writing as the case may be and any inflexion or derivation of any of those words has a corresponding meaning;

“agreed or determined” means agreed between the Company and the Minister or, failing agreement within three months of the Minister giving notice to the Company that he requires the value of a quantity of iron ore to be agreed or determined, as determined by the Minister and in agreeing or determining a fair and reasonable market value of such iron ore assessed at an arm’s length basis the Company and/or the Minister as the case may be shall have regard to prevailing markets and prices for iron ore both outside and within the Commonwealth and where prices beyond the deemed f.o.b. point are being considered the deductions mentioned in the definition of f.o.b. value;

**“approved proposal**” means a proposal approved or deemed approved by the Minister under this Agreement or a proposal the subject of an award made on an arbitration under this Agreement where the award is accepted by the Company within 3 months of delivery by the arbitrator;

“Area A” means the areas coloured red on the plan marked “X” initialled by or on behalf of the parties hereto for the purpose of identification;

“Area B” means the areas coloured blue on the said plan marked “X”;

“Area C” means the areas coloured yellow on the said plan marked “X”;

**“beneficiated manganese ore”** and **“beneficiated manganiferous ore”** mean respectively manganese ore and manganiferous ore which has been concentrated or upgraded otherwise than by washing drying crushing or screening or a combination thereof by the Company in a plant constructed pursuant to an approved proposal;

“beneficiated ore” means iron ore which has been concentrated or upgraded otherwise than by washing drying crushing or screening or a combination thereof by the Company in a plant constructed pursuant to an approved proposal;

“Clause” means a clause of this Agreement;

**“Commonwealth”** means the Commonwealth of Australia and includes the Government for the time being thereof;

**“Company’s workforce”** means the persons (and the dependants of those persons) connected directly with the Company’s activities under this Agreement, whether or not such persons are employed by the Company;

**“deemed f.o.b. point**” means on ship at the loading port;

**“deemed f.o.b. value”** means an agreed or determined value of the iron ore as if the iron ore was sold f.o.b. at the deemed f.o.b. point as at —

(i) in the case of iron ore the property of the Company which is shipped out of the said State, the date of shipment;

(ii) in any other case, the date of sale, transfer of ownership, disposal or use as the case may be;

**“EP Act”** means the *Environmental Protection Act 1986*;

“fine ore” means iron ore which is nominally sized minus six millimetres;

**“f.o.b. value”** means —

(i) in the case of iron ore shipped and sold by the Company, the price which is payable for the iron ore by the purchaser thereof to the Company or, where the Minister is not satisfied that the price payable in respect of the iron ore represents a fair and reasonable market value for that iron ore assessed at an arm’s length basis, such amount as is agreed or determined, less all export duties and export taxes payable to the Commonwealth on the export of the iron ore and all costs and charges properly incurred and payable by the Company from the time the iron ore shall be placed on ship at the loading port to the time the same is delivered and accepted by the purchaser including —

(1) ocean freight;

(2) marine insurance;

(3) port and handling charges at the port of discharge;

(4) all costs properly incurred in delivering the iron ore from port of discharge to the smelter and evidenced by relevant invoices;

(5) all weighing sampling assaying inspection and representation costs;

(6) all shipping agency charges after loading on and departure of ship from the loading port;

(7) all import taxes by the country of the port of discharge; and

(8) such other costs and charges as the Minister may in his discretion consider reasonable in respect of any shipment or sale;

(ii) in all other cases, the deemed f.o.b. value.

For the purpose of subparagraph (i) of this definition, it is acknowledged that the consideration payable in an arm’s length transaction for iron ore sold solely for testing purposes may be less than the fair and reasonable market value for that iron ore and in this circumstance where the Minister in his discretion is satisfied such consideration represents the entire consideration payable, the Minister shall be taken to be satisfied that such entire consideration represents the fair and reasonable market value;

**“iron ore”** means iron ore from the mining lease and except in the definitions of beneficiated ore, fine ore and lump ore includes beneficiated ore, manganese ore, manganiferous ore, beneficiated manganese ore and beneficiated manganiferous ore;

**“Land Act”** means the *Land Act 1933*;

**“loading port”** means in the case of iron ore shipped by the Company out of the said State the port of shipment and in the case of iron ore not so shipped means a port in the said State determined by the Minister for the purpose of this definition;

**“local authority”** means the council of a municipality that is a city, town or shire constituted under the *Local Government Act 1960*;

**“lump ore”** means iron ore which is nominally sized plus six millimetres minus thirty millimetres;

“manganese ore” means an ore having a naturally combined metal content of iron and manganese, the latter exceeding 35%;

**“manganiferous ore”** means an ore having a naturally combined metal content of iron and manganese, the latter being not less than 2% and not more than 35%.

“mine camp workforce” means the members of the Company’s workforce who are accommodated at the accommodation area but shall not include persons visiting the mine site in connection with the Company’s mining activities on a short term basis only or employed for a specific task of limited duration;

**“mine site”** means the mining lease the accommodation area and other areas provided for the facilities of the Company in the vicinity of the mining lease;

**“Mining Act”** means the *Mining Act 1978*;

“mining lease” means the mining lease granted pursuant to Clause 12 and includes any renewal thereof and according to the requirements of the context shall describe the area of land demised as well as the instrument by which it is demised and any areas added thereto pursuant to the provisions of Clause 14;

**“Minister”** means the Minister in the Government of the State for the time being responsible for the administration of the Act to ratify this Agreement and pending the passing of that Act means the Minister for the time being designated in a notice from the State to the Company and includes the successors in office of the Minister;

“Minister for Mines” means the Minister in the Government of the State for the time being responsible for the administration of the Mining Act;

**“month”** means calendar month;

**“notice”** means notice in writing;

**“person”** or **“persons”** includes bodies corporate;

**“private roads”** means the roads referred to in subclause (1) of Clause 18 and any other roads (whether within or outside the mining lease) constructed by the Company in accordance with an approved proposal or agreed by the parties to be a private road for the purposes of this Agreement;

**“public road”** means a road as defined by the *Road Traffic Act 1974*;

“said State” means the State of Western Australia;

“State Energy Commission” means The State Energy Commission of Western Australia as described in section 7 of the State Energy Commission Act 1979;

**“subclause”** means subclause of the Clause in which the term is used;

**“this Agreement”** “hereof” and “hereunder” refer to this Agreement whether in its original form or as from time to time added to varied or amended;

**“washing”** means a process of separation by water using only size as a criterion.

Interpretation

2. In this Agreement —

(a) monetary references are references to Australian currency unless otherwise specifically expressed;

(b) power given under any clause other than Clause 36 to extend any period or date shall be without prejudice to the power of the Minister under Clause 36;

(c) clause headings do not affect the interpretation or construction;

(d) words in the singular shall include the plural and words in the plural shall include the singular according to the requirements of the context; and

(e) reference to an Act includes the amendments to that Act for the time being in force and also any Act passed in substitution therefor or in lieu thereof and the regulations for the time being in force thereunder.

Initial obligations of the State

3. The State shall —

(a) introduce and sponsor a Bill in the State Parliament of Western Australia to ratify this Agreement and endeavour to secure its passage as an Act prior to 31 December 1992; and

(b) subject to the adequate protection of the environment (including flora and fauna) and the land affected (including improvements thereon) allow the Company to enter upon Crown Lands (including, if applicable, land the subject of a pastoral lease) to the extent reasonably necessary for the purposes of undertaking its obligations under subclause (1) of Clause 5.

Ratification and operation

4. (1) The provisions of this Agreement other than this Clause and Clauses 1, 2 and 3 shall not come into operation until the Bill referred to in Clause 3 has been passed by the Parliament of Western Australia and comes into operation as an Act.

(2) If before 31 December 1992 the said Bill has not commenced to operate as an Act then unless the parties hereto otherwise agree this Agreement shall then cease and determine and neither party hereto shall have any claim against the other with respect to any matter or thing arising out of, done, performed, or omitted to be done or performed under this Agreement.

(3) On the said Bill commencing to operate as an Act all the provisions of this Agreement shall operate and take effect notwithstanding the provisions of any Act or law.

Initial obligations of the Company

5. (1) The Company shall continue its field and office geological, geophysical, engineering, environmental, marketing and finance studies and other matters necessary to enable it to finalise and to submit the proposals referred to in Clause 7.

(2) The Company shall keep the State fully informed in writing quarterly as to the progress and results of its operations under subclause (1).

(3) The Company shall co‑operate with the State and consult with the representatives or officers of the State regarding matters referred to in subclauses (1) and (2) and any other relevant studies in relation to those subclauses that the Minister may wish to undertake.

Initial mining project

6. (1) Prior to submission of its proposals under Clause 7 the Company shall confer with the Minister with regard to the proposed mining of up to 15,000,000 tonnes of iron ore per annum from Area A and/or if desired by the Company and approved by the Minister (where he is satisfied as to the exploration work carried out in respect thereof) from Area B or portions thereof.

(2) (a) Sub

This is an opening excerpt, not the complete document.