image: screenshot from Tigers Realm Coal website 21.5.24
A letter sent today to Tim Farron MP
Dear Tim,
Thank you for pursuing this. Yes the letter from HMRC policy correspondence unit is breathtaking in its nonchalance regarding the Russian connections with West Cumbria Mining’s Director and funder via EMR, Owen Hegarty. The Australian government have taken Tiger’s Realm to court over its trading with Russia – and despite fierce legal challenges from Tiger’s Realm lawyers that the company was doing nothing wrong – Owen Hegarty’s Tigers Realm Coal has essentially been found guilty of war profiteering and ordered to stop trading in Russia. They now plan to sell the company bankrolled by Russia back to Russia – a win win for the shark mentality .
Owen Hegarty was appointed to West Cumbria Mining on 16th December 2022 and is no ordinary Director. He is founder and Executive Chairman of EMR Capital, a private equity company who put up the £Millions to get West Cumbria Mining started (at the same time he was getting £millions from the Russian government to bankroll his Siberian coal mine).
In December 2020 the headline in Financial Review boldly asserted “There’s never been a better time to mine coal in Siberia” “Mining industry veteran Owen Hegarty says his Siberian coking coal venture is poised to capitalise on China’s blacklisting of Australian coal, as it embarked on an exquisitely timed $43.5 million fundraising on Wednesday. ASX-listed Tigers Realm Coal has been mining on Russia’s Pacific coast for three years” The Director of WCM is an opportunist – nothing wrong with that, however this opportunist has no qualms about accepting money from governments. In the case of Owen Hegarty’s Tigers Realm Coal, the Russian government, to the tune of at least £30 Million.
The Australian Government have taken a very different line to the nonchalance displayed in the letter from HMRC regarding sanctions against companies with ties and trading with Russia.
Owen Hegarty is still we believe is a non-executive director with financial interests in Tigers Realm Coal. This is what the Sydney Herald reported on April 9th 2024:
“Despite multiple other businesses exiting Russia after Vladimir Putin launched a disastrous war against Ukraine two years ago, Tigers Realm is still mining and transporting coking coal in sub-zero temperatures from its Russian deposits through its subsidiaries to Asia. All its mining operations occur in Russia, with none of the coal landing in Australia. In the past year, it reaped a net profit of $46 million. The company was warned by Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in a non-binding finding in March last year that it was likely breaching the Autonomous Sanctions Act, but Tigers Realm launched legal action in June in the hope of having the finding overturned….Mining entrepreneur Owen Hegarty and Tony Manini listed Tigers Realm Coal on the Australian Stock Exchange in 2010. After listing, its shares traded at 54¢. Now, it has a market capitalisation of $65.3 million and its shares fetch less than 1¢ a share at around 0.05¢ each.”
On April 21st 2024 the Sydney Herald reports “Days after losing a legal challenge against Australia’s strict sanctions regime, Tigers Realm Coal announced it would sell its Russian assets – two coking coal mines and an export terminal in the country’s far east – to APM Invest, which is owned by Russian mining tycoon Mark Buzuk, for $US49 million ($76.3 million).”
By refusing to investigate WCM director Owen Hegarty’s financial ties with Russia our government is essentially endorsing war profiteering. The fact that Owen Hegarty’s colleague at WCM, CEO Mark Kirkbride is employed by our government to advise on the biggest and most contentious infrastructure project in the UK ever – and I’m not talking about the UK’s first deep coal mine in 30 years but the plans for a far bigger earthquake inducing hole – the deep nuclear dump (Geological Disposal Facility) should set alarm bells ringing loud and clear.
Instead the reply from Richard Las Director of Fraud Investigation Service – HMRC is
“HMRC’s responsibility under The Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 is for goods and certain services. Therefore, while we note Ms Birkby’s concerns regarding investment in West Cumbria. Mining, I am afraid this is not a matter on which HMRC can comment.”
This is a very big scandal and for HMRC to brush it under the carpet suggests collusion.
Thank you for continuing to pursue this – if there is any other avenue open to expose and investigate this scandal I would be grateful.
Best wishes
Marianne
founder of Radiation Free Lakeland (Lakes Against Nuclear Dump/Keep Cumbrian Coal in the Hole are ongoing campaigns)
Keep Cumbrian Coal in the Hole 