Clive Palmer holds shares in companies he has fought

CLIVE Palmer's declaration to parliament of his financial interests names more than 100 companies under his control.

Member for Fairfax and leader of Palmer United Party Clive Palmer.

CLIVE Palmer's declaration to parliament of his financial interests names more than 100 companies under his control, many of which are inactive or irrelevant to his three core businesses of tourism, nickel production and being a royalty-seeker from iron ore tenements.

But the Palmer United Party leader's statement of registrable interests does show that he has bought shares in two publicly listed companies he has accused of wrongful behaviour and fought in court: the US-listed Hyatt Hotels Corp and the Hong Kong-listed Citic Pacific.

Mr Palmer also now describes himself in the document as a "former professor" of Gold Coast's Bond University, which had expressed concern in a statement to The Australian earlier this year that he was using the honorary title widely and wrongly, against protocols and written advice.

Mr Palmer has ducked the declaration's requirement that he disclose gifts valued at more than $750 from official sources.

He stated he received such gifts "in my capacity as a director of companies listed", and that all gifts he received "will be on the account of those companies and not received on my behalf personally".

Followers of Mr Palmer's business interests will learn little because of the scarcity of new material in the declaration, which provides no details about the size of his equity holdings or inter-company loans.

Mr Palmer is in breach of regulatory rules for failing to lodge the accounts of his major company, Mineralogy, on time again this year, but earlier filings for this entity as well as his large nickel-related companies include more detail than parliament released yesterday.

The requirements of parliamentarians are that they disclose "shareholdings in public and private companies (including holding companies) indicating the name . . . family and business trusts and nominee companies . . . real estate, including the location (suburb or area only) and the purpose for which it is owned . . . and registered directorships of companies".

Details of substantial sources of income as well as liabilities -- including the creditor -- and saving or investment accounts, bonds and debentures must also be revealed. However, there is no requirement to disclose the valuation of the assets and liabilities.

The declaration reveals that Mr Palmer and his Mineralogy company own shares in 11 public companies: blue chips BHP Billiton, Aurizon Holdings (formerly QR National), Telstra, Bluescope, Citic Pacific and Hyatt Hotels Corp. The remaining five companies are low capitalisation "penny dreadfuls" including Australasian Resources, De Grey Mining, Pacific Star Network, RAB Special Situation (UK) and Gladstone Pacific Nickel.

His wife, Anna, owns shares in one public company, retailer Myer Holdings, but together and separately they own property -- houses, commercial premises, land and units -- in Bulgaria, Queensland and French Polynesia.

Mr Palmer has listed only a handful of overseas private companies of which he is a director, including On Win Enterprises Corporation in the British Virgin Islands tax haven, Palmair LLC for aircraft ownership in the US, and John F. Kennedy Library Foundation. He has also listed the World Economic Council and World Leadership Alliance, both of which were established for him to lead after he made donations of almost $1 million to the Spanish think-tank Club de Madrid.

Other assets listed as being each worth more than $7500 include vintage cars, boats, motor bikes, memorabilia, works of art, trademarks, paintings, livestock, websites, planes and a Sunsuper superannuation account.

Mr Palmer has previously described his wealth as being about $6 billion, however, examination of his main business interests shows that their running costs and operating losses far outweigh any profits. Mr Palmer's nickel refinery near Townsville in Queensland has been losing millions of dollars a month.