Clive Palmer spent $250,000 flying a woman from Kyrgyzstan to Singapore in a private jet, a court has been told.
Mr Palmer bristled as he was quizzed about his decision to spend that much flying Evgenia Bednova to Singapore, where they met on business.
The court has been told that Mr Palmer had instructed Queensland Nickel to pay Ms Bednova $1 million in fees for the work she did representing Mr Palmer's business interest in her homeland.
When barrister Walter Sofronoff began questioning Mr Palmer about Ms Bednova, when they met, and how often, the former MP urged his own lawyer to object about the relevance of the questioning, but Registrar Murray Belcher allowed it to continue.
Mr Sofronoff asked Palmer why he ordered his Mineralogy company to pay for a jet to pick up Ms Bednova from Bishkek, in Kyrgyzstan, and take her to Singapore.
She was the only person on the plane and the trip cost $250,000.
Asked why he chartered the private flight, Mr Palmer said it was for staff safety reasons because Kyrgyzstan's national airline had just one plane, and that ended up crashing killing more than 100 people.
He said his relationship with Ms Bednova, who he described as "about six-foot tall, medium build, European" and aged between 35 and 40, was a professional one, and that's why she'd gone to Singapore, where he was attending a Forbes event back in 2011.
Mr Palmer's wife, who held directorships with various companies owned by her husband, and with links to Queensland Nickel, will give evidence on Thursday afternoon.
AAP