Hancock Prospecting has reported a net profit after tax of 2.8 billion dollars for the 2025-26 financial year, down from 3.1 billion dollars the year before, as softer iron ore prices outweighed record operating scale. Revenue was 11.67 billion dollars and total assets grew to 50.3 billion dollars from 43.9 billion, while total comprehensive income, including investment portfolio gains, rose to 5.15 billion dollars from 3.53 billion. The group paid about 2.3 billion dollars in Commonwealth and state taxes during the year.
The engine remains the newly consolidated Hancock Iron Ore business, which brought Roy Hill and Atlas Iron under one banner in July 2025. In its first full year the business produced 71.5 million tonnes, generated a net profit of 1.8 billion dollars and supported 2.6 billion dollars in dividends, taking cumulative dividends from the two operations to 18.1 billion dollars. It paid 1.5 billion dollars in taxes and royalties and spent 3.1 billion dollars with Western Australian suppliers. Roy Hill marked ten years since its first shipment from Port Hedland, with more than 500 million tonnes exported since 2015, and its latest mine plan has extended the operation’s expected life by more than a decade.
The Hope Downs joint venture with Rio Tinto produced 36.5 million tonnes on a 100 percent basis and contributed approximately 500 million dollars to Hancock’s profit. The 2.3 billion dollar Hope Downs 2 development delivered first ore in February and is progressing ahead of schedule; its two new pits are expected to provide 31 million tonnes of annual capacity once ramped up, supporting more than 1,300 full time roles. McPhee Creek, which reached first ore earlier this year and officially opened in October, will feed ore into Roy Hill for processing.
The next capital decision is Mulga Downs. Hancock is targeting a final investment decision by the end of 2026, subject to approvals, on a project designed to supply approximately 10 million tonnes a year into the Hancock Iron Ore system over a proposed 17 year mine life.
Chief executive Garry Korte said Australia’s resource endowment remains rich and the world still wants what the country produces, but that investment conditions are becoming more challenging. Executive chairman Gina Rinehart pointed to 24.5 billion dollars of taxes paid over the past decade. The results underline the strategic point: with iron ore margins thinner, Hancock’s growth now depends on sanctioning replacement tonnes at Hope Downs 2 and Mulga Downs at the pace its older pits deplete.