Gina Rinehart is pulling out all the stops to get her $13 billion Roy Hill project finished within six months, but experts are questioning the timing.
Roy Hill will ramp up production later this year while the world's biggest iron ore producers continue to increase supply, contributing to a slump in the iron ore price, which has hit a fresh six-year low of US$54.50 per tonne.
Australia's richest person will next week lead investors on a tour of Hancock Prospecting's new port and rail operations at Port Hedland.
But Ms Rinehart is likely to keep crucial details of the company's forecasts and funding issues under wraps.
Chief executive Barry Fitzgerald recently said Roy Hill was not under any financial pressure from bankers to complete the 55 million tonne project and begin shipments in September.
But Morningstar analyst Matthew Hodge said the party was over for iron ore producers, and Roy Hill would arrive on the scene just as the hangover was kicking in.
"The timing is abominable," he told AAP.
"They're forcing supply into a market that doesn't want it."
Fortescue Metals' ramp up of 100 million extra tonnes in 2013/14 has not helped matters, and Rio Tinto's 50 million extra tonnes this year would further exacerbate the situation.
Fortescue, Australia's third largest iron ore producer, is pushing its production rates to capacity as Australia's biggest miners Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton boost production.
It's a recipe for ongoing weak prices and has the potential to force Fortescue to curtail production and push Roy Hill underwater, analysts say.
David Lennox from Fat Prophets said Roy Hill appeared to be scrambling to finish construction so it could begin bringing in cash to maintain operational stability during the price turmoil.
"Roy Hill is probably in the worst position of all," Mr Lennox said.
"The mine was being developed at a time, like Fortescue, when the costs were high and they're going to come smack bang to the market in the middle of a deadly iron ore price."
Mr Lennox questioned whether Roy Hill executives would have planned for an iron ore price as low as $US55 per tonne.
"If you're making a loss on every shipment of iron ore you've got to make up that drain on your cash somewhere," he said.
Fortescue would probably reduce operational volumes to keep positive cash flow, he said.
Last week Lourenco Goncalves, the head of US based iron ore company Cliffs Resources, said he was trying to sell his only Australian iron ore mine as China did not need more supply.
"Roy Hill's timing is terrible," he told reporters.
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