James Hardie relocation bid riles asbestos victims

Email Print

29 June 2009

James Hardie Industries has won no friends among asbestos victims with the proposed relocation of its headquarters from the Netherlands to Ireland at an estimated cost of up to $US71 million ($88 million).

Critics have accused the company of spending money that could go into the Asbestos Injuries Compensation Fund (AICF) established for sufferers of asbestos-related diseases.

But James Hardie says the proposal will not change its “overall commitment” to the fund.

“However, if a contribution is due to the AICF in the company’s 2011 financial year, which is not yet known, the costs associated with the proposal and with the transfer of the intellectual property will most likely reduce the amount of the company’s contribution in that year,” CEO Louis Gries said in a statement.

The company says the move to Ireland has been prompted by such factors as potential pressure from the US Internal Revenue Service, which did not recognise tax benefits in 2006 and 2007 under the relevant US/Netherlands treaty.

Voting on the first of two stages for the proposal will be held at extraordinary general meetings of shareholders in Sydney on August 18 and Amsterdam on August 21. Full implementation is targeted for early next year.

In April the NSW Supreme Court found that former directors of James Hardie breached their duties by making misleading statements about the company’s ability to pay asbestos compensation.