Flanagan’s speech to the WA Mining Club in Perth on Friday came only a day after the weak iron ore price forced Atlas to sack 80 “really good people”

“We’ve had a tough week at Atlas,” Flanagan said.

“It’s a tough industry and the downturn we’re experiencing – and I feel like I’m experiencing it in truckloads – it’s all part of the cycle.”

BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto have been accused by WA Premier Colin Barnett and Fortescue Metals Group of flooding the market with iron ore supply to push junior producers out.

“The iron ore industry is the most competitive and the most brutal mining space I could imagine,” Flanagan said.

Flanagan referred to tactics employed by the majors to maintain dominance and prevent access to rail and port infrastructure.

“You don’t know half the challenges we’ve faced because it would be defamation to list them – well, it’s not defamation if it’s true,” he said.

“Given what I have experienced it would not be a big leap at all to say this is behaviour designed to maintain market share and market dominance at the expense of competitors.”

The iron ore spot price hit a 5.5-year low of $US68.49 late last month, while Atlas shares closed at an all-time low of A15c on Friday.

Flanagan attributed the volatility to the high liquidity in the spot market, as well as short sellers.

“There are people who make money when the Atlas share price falls,” he said.

“The larger companies don’t just grow their market share but they get a greater capacity to go and find service providers and screw them for the price and renegotiate everything with everyone.

“There are a lot more incentives out there for a falling iron ore price.”

But Flanagan said iron ore and Atlas itself would bounce back.

“Our vision as a business is to be there when the lackey band breaks,” he said.

“We’ll have built reliance in our people and our cost base to spawn a whole range of companies like ours and I can’t wait.

“Never, ever give up.”

Flanagan said the cycles of the mining industry were like seasons, which could be overwhelming, but also reassuring that the market would bounce back.

“It’s going to happen again – we’re going to have good times again.”

Atlas shares rose 3.3% this morning to 15.5c.