Clive Palmer’s ‘huge QN loan to manager’

The Federal Court has heard Clive Palmer ordered Queensland Nickel to pay a $500,000 loan to his refinery manager.

Former QN manager Ian Ferguson appears at the Federal Court hearing yesterday.

As Clive Palmer prepares to be interrogated about the collapse of Queensland Nickel, the Federal Court has heard the tycoon ordered the company to pay a $500,000 loan to his “old friend” and refinery manager.

Queensland Nickel’s former managing director of operations Ian Ferguson — who gave Mr Palmer his first job as a Gold Coast real estate salesman in the 1970s — yesterday confirmed he had recently refused requests from QN liquidators to repay the loan.

Mr Ferguson told the Federal Court public examination into QN’s downfall that he had been a senior executive at the Townsville refinery for more than two years when he approached Mr Palmer in July 2014 for a commercial loan.

“He said yes and said he’d look after it … and said he’d pay it out of Queensland Nickel,” Mr Ferguson said.

QN fell into liquidation under $300 million in debts in April, after almost 800 workers lost their jobs. Administrators claimed the refinery operating company was used as a “cash cow” by Mr Palmer to funnel millions of dollars into other parts of his corporate entity.

Barrister Catherine Muir, for special-purpose liquidators PPB Advisory, yesterday suggested to Mr Ferguson he did not care where the money came from. Mr Ferguson replied: “Not at that time. I went to Clive Palmer.”

Despite being shown a deed of financial assistance document that indicated the money was being loaned by Queensland Nickel, which required him to repay within 30 days of his leaving the company’s employ, Mr Ferguson said he did not have to repay the company.

He said the money came from QN’s parent companies QNI Metals and QNI Resources, and was due to be repaid in May next year. However, he said he did not know whether either of the companies had a bank account, even though he had served as their ­director for 10 months in 2013.

Mr Ferguson was also being paid by QN — at Mr Palmer’s ­direction — $3850 a month to scout property developments for the former federal MP.

Mr Palmer is scheduled to be examined in the Federal Court this morning by barrister Tom Sullivan QC for PPB Advisory.

He has twice tried and failed to avoid turning up at the public examination, which is investi­gating whether Mr Palmer acted as QN’s shadow director and the possibility the company traded while insolvent.

Mr Palmer denies any wrongdoing.