Swan decision soon on third-party rail access in Pilbara

<p>Federal treasurer Wayne Swan made a brief visit to the miners of Western Australia’s Pilbara yesterday as he prepared for a decision on the region’s rail access dispute.</p> <p>Mr Swan’s decision on third party access to infrastructure owned and operated by BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto was due on Wednesday, but could be made as early as today, mainstream press reported.</p> <p>The National Competition Council and successive courts have consistently rejected BHP and Rio’s policy of closing access to their lines to other smaller competing miners in the region.</p> <p>In June, the NCC recommended supporting the treasurer’s decision to open up Rio’s Robe River and Hamersley lines and BHP’s Goldsworthy line to third party access.</p> <p>Fortescue Metals Group also had recent success against BHP when the High Court ruled that the mining giant should open negotiations for access to its Goldsworthy line.</p> <p>In its decision, the High Court reiterated that BHP’s rail lines were on Crown land that were leased to the miner at a "peppercorn" rate.</p> <p>&#8220It (Fortescue) did not seek access to BHP’s locomotives and rolling stock as it would use its own,&#8221 the High Court said earlier this month in relation to Fortescue’s intentions.</p> <p>If Mr Swan supports the NCC recommendations to open the rail lines to third party access, BHP and Rio would be forced to negotiate access agreements with Fortescue, the Pilbara’s third largest miner, and smaller companies, such as Atlas Iron and Brockman Resources.</p> <p>Alternatively, the treasurer can abstain from a decision and leave the status quo.</p> <p>Rio and BHP have both warned opening the Pilbara rail system to multiple access could transplant problems seen on the east coast coal networks to the Pilbara region and cost the industry up to $30bn over 20 years.</p> <p>Mr Swan promised miners he would make a decision regarding the NCC recommendations, unlike his predecessor Peter Costello, who, two years ago, let the 60-day time lapse, effectively voiding the recommendations by default.</p> <br />