WA Premier Says BHP, Rio Tinto Deal On Royalties Close - Report

14th Jun 2010 22:36

SYDNEY (Dow Jones)--Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett has said BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) and Rio Tinto Ltd. (RTP) have agreed to pay an extra A$300 million in mining royalties but are still in talks to gain more concessions, says a report in Tuesday's Australian Financial Review. Barnett wants the miners to pay an industry-standard 5.62% royalty on the value of iron ore fines exports, rather than the concessional 3.75% that was set when the state's iron ore industry was in its infancy in the 1960s. The paper says Barnett made the claim at a parliamentary hearing last week. Barnett is confident of reaching a deal on ending the original concession in the next two weeks but other issues are still unresolved, the report says. "The dispute is what trade-off they will get as goodwill for that agreement," he is reported as saying. Newspaper website: http://www.afr.com -By Sydney bureau; 61-2-8272-4680; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 14, 2010 17:36 ET (21:36 GMT)