Clive Mensink cut from 67 entities by Clive Palmer in one day

Company searches show Clive Palmer removed his nephew from senior roles with firms including Mineralogy.

On the day his nephew Clive Mensink apparently stepped off a luxury cruise ship with his new girlfriend on his arm, Clive Palmer was removing him from senior roles in 67 companies in his empire.

Company searches conducted by The Australian confirm the flurry of activity on February 8, when Mr Mensink was ditched as director or secretary of scores of Mr Palmer’s companies, including his flagship corporation Mineralogy, Palmer Leisure Coolum — which owns the magnate’s Sunshine Coast golf resort — and the failed Queensland Nickel.

Mr Mensink was the sole registered director of Queensland Nickel when it collapsed last year — costing creditors $300 million and 800 jobs — and a Federal Court judge has ordered him to cut short his year-long overseas holiday to testify about the corporate crash.

Mr Palmer seems to have replaced his nephew with himself in many of the roles, including as director and secretary of Queensland Nickel in liquidation.

Despite a sworn affidavit from Mr Mensink stating he is “retired”, The Australian can reveal he is still a director and secretary of nine companies controlled by Mr Palmer, including some that appear to be associated with the troubled refinery and that were established after QN folded.

Another, Marlborough Nickel, is embroiled in Queensland Supreme Court action where the environment department is trying to have it wound up.

The affidavit — sworn by Mr Mensink in Boston on January 31 and tendered to the Federal Court as an excuse for not returning to Australia — also declared he would be on a cruise that ended on February 8.

“As previously stated, my absence from Australia is unrelated to the matters of the (public) examination,” Mr Mensink swore in the affidavit. “I am presently travelling with my current partner and my personal relationship with her is paramount to me. I have promised her that she would accompany me on this trip and it is important to me that I do not let her down and that the examination does not interfere with my personal commitments.”

Early this month The Australian found Mr Mensink’s girlfriend, Jodie Shay, back at work in suburban Brisbane. She dodged questions about whether Mr Mensink would return to Australia and why she was not still in ­Europe with him.

Mr Palmer’s motivation for the corporate shuffling on February 8 was not clear, and he did not answer questions from The Australian yesterday. Mr Mensink was also uncontactable.

Late last month, Federal Court judge John Dowsett ordered Mr Mensink to halt his overseas holiday and return to Brisbane to be questioned about the collapse of Queensland Nickel on March 27.

However, it is not known whether Mr Mensink even knows of the orders, with court documents showing his solicitor, Sam Iskander, made at least nine unanswered phone calls to his client in three days. “I cannot state with any degree of certainty at all that he is aware that orders have been made,” Mr Iskander swore in an affidavit on March 3.

If Mr Mensink does not appear in Brisbane this month, Justice Dowsett has warned he will issue an arrest warrant.