THE financial woes surrounding beleaguered fertiliser king Pankaj Oswal have deepened after revelations his Norwegian partners posted a loss on their share of the massive Burrup ammonia plant in northern Western Australia.
While receivers comb the books for signs of financial irregularities and auditor KPMG is yet to sign off on Burrup's latest annual accounts, Norwegian giant Yara reported the profit on its 35 per cent share of the fertiliser plant slumped from $285 million krone (about $50 million) to a loss of $44 million krone in the year to September.
The result is remarkable given soaring global fertiliser prices and flies in the face of comments by Mr Oswal on Tuesday that Burrup was "extremely profitable", The Australian Financial Review reports.
KPMG would not discuss the audit delay on Wednesday but sources say the accounting firm is concerned about significant related-party transactions at Burrup, including the involvement of Mr Oswal's separate shipping interests.
