The "prospector" behind a mystery company named in legal action between Cazaly Resources Ltd joint managing director Nathan McMahon and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd says he has nothing to do with the disputed Shovelanna iron ore tenement.
But Peter Symonds, the sole director of Maincoast Pty Ltd which was named as a defendant by FMG in its Federal Court action to stop Cazaly doing deals with regard to the tenement, said that he was the one with a deal to give FMG first "look" at any iron ore he found, not Mr McMahon as FMG had claimed.
Mr Symonds, who said the term prospector applied very loosely to him, said the arrangement stemmed from a successful deal, in which Mr McMahon acted as his adviser, to sell FMG some iron ore tenements last year.
Yesterday, FMG claimed it had a pre-emptive right over any prospective iron ore tenement applications made by Cazaly managing director Nathan McMahon and a company called Maincoast Pty Ltd, which FMG claimed he was associated with.
"My understanding of the deal was I had the deal with Twiggy (FMG CEO Andrew Forrest)," Mr Symonds told WA Business News today.
"Any other iron ore ground I came across I would give him a look at."
Mr Symonds said he accepted $55,000 in a couple of tranches from FMG.
He said Mr McMahon had negotiated the deal with FMG (or a related entity) last year over some tenements he recalled may have been near Roy Hill, in the Pilbara.
Mr Symonds said he had bought and sold numerous leases and always used Mr McMahon as an adviser.
"I call him my leasing guru and my negotiating guru," he said.
"He is worth his weight in gold."
Mr McMahon could not be contacted for comment but Cazaly previously stated there is no substance to FMG's allegations which were reportedly dismissed by the Federal Court yesterday.
Mr Symonds said that despite being named as a defendant, Maincoast had not been served with any writ regarding the matter and had not played any part in applying for the Shovelanna tenement which Rio Tinto had let lapse in August this year.
"I had nothing to do with it," he said.
However an FMG executive director of operations Graeme Rowley said the company had clearly named Mr McMahon in its agreements, the first under which the payments had been made and the second, a longer form contract which had been negotiated but not signed when Cazaly came into posession of Shovelanna.
Mr Rowley said the company was still considering its legal options in regards to the case.
