Nathan Tinkler (born 1 February 1976) is a former mining magnate and businessman from the Hunter Region, New South Wales, Australia. He started out as a mining apprentice in the Hunter Valley, in New South Wales and set up his own business at age 26. Much of his wealth, most subsequently lost, was acquired from investments in the mining industry.Born in Port Macquarie, New South Wales on 1 February 1976, Tinkler qualified as an electrician at the Muswellbrook Technical and Further Education institution (TAFE). He worked as an apprentice at BHP's Bayswater open-cut mine for a time until he was either fired or given a redundancy package. He was allegedly often in debt during his time at the mine and refused to pay or abused his creditors. At the age of 26 he started his own mine machinery maintenance business. Wikipedia