Fortescue’s AI bet as it trims payout after Iron Bridge writedown blow

Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue has trimmed its final payout to investors after booking a hefty fall in statutory net profit following a big write down in the value of its trouble-plagued Iron Bridge project.

It is now looking to the power of artificial intelligence to squeeze the most out of its vast Pilbara network and power an ambition green energy grid

The iron ore major on Thursday declared a final fully franked dividend of 46¢ a share, down from last year’s 60¢ a share, trimming the full-year payout to $1.08. That was down from the previous year’s $1.10.

Fortescue revealed a 9 per cent rise in revenue to just under $US17 billion ($23.9b).

But a previously flagged $US525 million charge again the value of its Iron Bridge joint venture magnetite mine south of Port Hedland weighed on profit, which fell 15 per cent to $US2.87b.

Fortescue shipped a record 201.3 million tonnes for the year, with average realised prices up 7 per cent from a year earlier to $US90.7/t. Cost per wet metric tonne was marginally higher at $US18.74/t.

Fortescue metals and operations chief executive Dino Otranto said the miner invested $US3.6b across the business and finished the year with $US5.1b in cash, with net debt of $US900m.

“That puts us in a strong position to continue investing in growth while delivering returns to shareholders,” he said.

“We’re also continuing to look for ways to lift productivity and get more from our assets.

“AI is one of our biggest opportunities to create value and has the potential to change almost every aspect of how we operate.

“We’re already putting it to work across drilling, processing, rail and haulage, and using it to optimise how we generate, store and use energy across our Green Grid.

“And this is just the start. Autonomy changed how we operated and helped drive our costs down. We see AI doing the same – but on a much broader scale.”