Fortescue job cuts ‘heartbreaking’: FMG founder Andrew Forrest

FORTESCUE Metals Group is cutting up to 100 jobs a day, founder Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest has confirmed.

A stop sign stands at the entrance to the crushing facility at Fortescue Metals Group, Cloudbreak Iron Ore operation in Cloudbreak in Western Australia, on Monday, Jul. 25, 2011. Photographer: Carla Gottgens/Bloomberg

FORTESCUE Metals Group is cutting up to 100 jobs a day, founder Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest has confirmed.

The iron ore miner is expected to slash its workforce of about 4500 by some 700 positions.

Mr Forrest described the job cuts as “personally tragic” and “heartbreaking”, but said the company was still making profits, with a break-even price of about $US39 a tonne.

Andrew Forrest

The price for the steel-making commodity has rebounded from mid-$US40/t last month to about $US62/t now.

While Mr Forrest noted rivals Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton had a break-even price about $US30/t, the latter announced plans on Tuesday to slash costs at its WA iron ore mines to $US16/t during the 2016 financial year.

The billionaire and philanthropist also took another swipe at the mining giants for increasing output amid price weakness.

He said Tuesday’s federal budget was good in light of the “debilitating” impact the “market share game being played by a couple of multinationals” had had on the economy.

“They did try and crush all competitors overseas and in Australia to gain, what I would say, not worth it points of market share,” he told the ABC on Wednesday.

Mr Forrest renewed his call for BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto to be the subject of a parliamentary inquiry into “predatory volume behaviour” and “distorting the free market”.

“When the power of the balance sheet ... meets the power of public office, the power of the balance sheet is no match,” he said.

He’s been backed by the Australian Workers Union, which has accused BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto of anti-competitive and “cartel-like” behaviour.

Mr Forrest was himself investigated by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission for potentially breaching cartel laws after he called on the big iron ore miners to cap production to boost the iron ore price.

The ACCC later dropped the matter.

Originally published as Fortescue job cuts ‘heartbreaking’: FMG founder Andrew Forrest