The Australian Pipeline Trust (APA) has been up in arms over the decision, which leaves it with an almost new gas pipeline to nowhere.

APA, along with Western Power, operates the 365km Midwest gas pipeline to the Mt Magnet operation and has been forced to write down its stake by $20 million, leaving the asset valued at less than $3 million.

Making the decision that much harder to bear for WA is the fact that Xstrata has sold the project’s high tech processing plant to another operation and has refused to relinquish its hold over the vanadium deposit, meaning no-one else will have access to one of the world’s largest deposits of the specialty metal despite rising demand.

WA taxpayers will also be forced to write off $30 million of infrastructure injected into the project by former Premier Richard Court.