BHP, Rio Tinto, Xstrata Met With Australian Government Wednesday

16th Jun 2010 05:15

CANBERRA (Dow Jones)--Mining giants BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP.AU), Rio Tinto PLC (RIO.AU) and Xstrata PLC (XTA.LN) met with the Australian government in Canberra Wednesday to discuss a proposed 40% tax on resource sector "super profits" but appear no closer to any compromise deal. The meeting was attended by Australian Resources Minister Martin Ferguson, BHP Billiton Chief Executive Marius Kloppers, Rio Tinto Australia Managing Director David Peever and Xstrata Coal Chief Executive Peter Freyberg, according to people familiar with the situation. During the meeting, the companies outlined three "fundamental" areas of concern with the resource super profits tax: that the tax isn't applied retrospectively; that it retains Australia's international competitiveness; and the stability of tax and royalty regimes for existing and new projects. "At present there is no formal acknowledgement from the government that these key issues will be addressed," the trio said in a joint statement. -by Rachel Pannett, Dow Jones Newswires; 61-2-6208-0901; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 16, 2010 00:15 ET (04:15 GMT)