<PAGE>

                                                                  Exhibit 4xviii

                       [ATLAS PACIFIC LIMITED LETTERHEAD]

5 June 2001


Dr. Joseph Taylor
3 Macs Court
KELSO QLD 4815

Dear Joseph

Employment Contract - Managing Director

It is with pleasure that we appoint you to the position of Managing Director of
Atlas Pacific Limited and its associated companies. We set out your terms and
conditions below:-

1. Duties and Responsibilities

   Your duties and responsibilities are set out in the attached job description.
   Because the job description cannot be all encompassing, your responsibilities
   may extend beyond those listed in the attached job description.

2. Commencement date

   1st September 2001. You will be required to spend six weeks in the Perth
   office prior to this date to familiarise yourself with some of the duties and
   responsibilities that will be required of you in this position and to
   acquaint yourself with duties of the Perth office staff.

3. Remuneration Package

     3.1  Basic Remuneration
          From the period 1st September 2001 to 31st December 2001, your
          gross annual base salary will be A$155,000 from which superannuation
          will be deducted at a minimum rate of 8%.

          From 1st January 2002, your gross annual base salary will be
          A$180,000 from which superannuation will be deducted at a minimum rate
          of 8% (9% from 1 July 2002).

     3.2  Incentives
          From 1st September 2001 to 31st December 2001, the incentives that
          you will be entitled to will be those that were available to you under
          your contract as project manager, those being:
          a)   Hatchery-produced shell presented to technicians will attract a
               bonus payment in accordance with the formula as follows-
               Bonus = (No. of Shell presented - 40,000) x A$0.50
               The target number of shell to be presented is 100,000 and this
               will limit the maximum of the bonus to A$40,000 per annum;

<PAGE>

          b)   Saleable pearls from shell seeded in (a) above will attract a
               bonus in accordance with the formula as follows -
               If the number of saleable pearls is at least 55,000, then the
               bonus will be A$1.00 per saleable pearl. If the saleable pearls
               produced is less than 55,000, then no bonus is paid.

          The term saleable pearl in (b) above refers to the category of pearls
          that are classified as "Saleable" by Pearlautore International when
          the pearls are graded by it in Sydney.

          From 1st January 2002, you will be entitled to a bonus as follows:

          (a)  An amount equivalent to 25% of your base salary, payable if
               certain qualifying criteria are met, as determined by the members
               of the Executive Committee or Remuneration Committee from time to
               time. The criteria by which this incentive may be judged may
               include but are not limited to:

               Production Criteria - e.g.
               .   Hatchery to produce sufficient spat for internal farm needs
                   as determined by the annual budgets and where required or
                   available, external sales for joint ventures and sale to
                   third parties;
               .   To meet nucleation targets as set down in the budgets each
                   year;
               .   To ensure that the number of saleable pearls (as determined
                   by Pearlautore International) available for sale each year is
                   at least as predicted in the budgets;

               Financial Criteria - e.g.
               .   To ensure that cash reserves are in line with budget
                   forecasts;
               .   To ensure that after tax profits are in line with budget
                   forecasts;

               Other strategies - e.g.
               .   The retention of management staff in Australia and Indonesia;
               .   To develop and implement substantial investor awareness
                   programmes of Atlas Pacific Limited by undertaking such
                   activities as stockbroker presentations, newsletter
                   publications and press releases with the objective of
                   maximising the Company's share price as a result of the
                   market being fully informed.

           (b) A maximum of 200,000 options, allocated pro-rata to the
               proportion of the bonus allocation in (a) above, to purchase
               shares in the Company at a price that will be determined as being
               10 cents above the average share price for the month of December
               of the year prior to when they are allocated. The options will be
               issued on the 1st January after the bonus is awarded and they
               will have a term of 3 years from that date. The options will not
               be allowed to be exercised in the first year that they are held.
               The options will not be transferable and options that are not
               exercised before the termination of employment will be forfeited
               at the discretion of the Board.

       3.3 Review
           Your basis salary will be subject to annual review.

                                       2

<PAGE>

4.  Additional entitlements

         4.1    20 working days annual leave per annum and 10 days sick leave
                per annum;

         4.2    Relocation costs, up to an amount to be approved by the Board,
                to cover the cost of moving your family and their personal
                belongings from Queensland to Perth and for moving your
                personal belongings (excluding your yacht) from Indonesia;

         4.3    Reimbursement of the costs of temporary accommodation for a
                period of up to 4 months from the Commencement Date while you
                and your family are in Perth and before you have made
                arrangements in relation to a permanent place of residence in
                Perth. The amount of this cost should be reasonable and should
                be approved by the Chairman before it is incurred.

         4.4    Reimbursement of car hire costs for a period of 4 months from
                the Commencement Date while you are in Perth.

5.  Confidentiality

    You must not, except in the proper performance of your duties, disclose to
    any person (and must use your best endeavours to prevent the publication or
    disclosure to any person) any trade secret or other confidential information
    concerning the Company's operations.

    The contents of this contract are also considered confidential and likewise
    you must not disclose any detail to any person except in the proper
    performance of your duties.

6.  Notice

    It is the intention of the parties that this contract be for an indefinite
    period. Four months written notice must be given by one party to the other
    party in order to terminate this contract.

If you are in agreement with the above terms and conditions please sign the copy
of this letter and return it to us.

Yours sincerely,

/s/ AM Kerr
Professor AM Kerr
Chairman

Terms and Conditions Accepted

/s/ James Taylor
-------------------------
James Taylor

Date: 25/7/2001

                                       3

<PAGE>

                                    J. TAYLOR
                                 JOB DESCRIPTION
                               (Managing Director)

1.   General Administration
     1.1  Respond to queries and incidents in the field;
     1.2  General supervision of all management staff;
     1.3  Personnel administration including hiring, dismissal, dispute
          resolution, review of performance and review of remuneration for all
          Perth based staff and Indonesian based expatriates;
     1.4  Provide for staff training and development in Indonesia and Australia
          to ensure that the Group's objectives are met;
     1.5  Ensure that management succession planning is in place for the
          rotation of senior staff who leave the organisation;
     1.6  Review insurance requirements and deal with claim issues as they
          arise;
     1.7  Prepare information for Board and Executive Committee meetings;
     1.8  Communicate with Directors, suppliers and statutory authorities in
          Australia and Indonesia;
     1.9  Occupation, health & safety review;
     1.10 Advise on immigration issues for expat. Staff in Indonesia.

2.   Liaison/Public Relations
     2.1  Represent the company and its activities in a positive light to the
          press, investment community, regulatory authorities, etc.
     2.2  Communicate with the press, shareholders, stock brokers (including
          meetings and presentations in the Eastern states and the USA as
          required), bankers and regulatory authorities in Australia such as the
          ASX, ASIC and the USA such as NASDAQ and the SEC;
     2.3  Communicate with Indonesian authorities such as the BKPM and the tax
          office as required;
     2.4  Actively involve the company's Indonesian representatives in its
          activities in Indonesia;
     2.5  Represent the company in pursuit of other business and joint venture
          opportunities.

3.   Financial
     3.1  Oversee the preparation, presentation and discussion with the Board
          and management of annual budget forecasts and the reporting to the
          Board on prior year results against budget forecasts for that period;
     3.2  Prepare business plans as required by the Board;
     3.3  Review the preparation of annual reports and half yearly reports
          including review of operations and all other compliance matters within
          the statutory time limits;
     3.4  Liaise with auditors and tax advisors as required to ensure compliance
          with laws and maximisation of financial planning opportunities;
     3.5  Supervise the preparation of monthly management accounts;
     3.6  Management of cash flow, ensuring that sufficient reserves are
          available as directed by the Board;

                                       4

<PAGE>

     3.7  Ensure that expenditure controls for the purchase of fixed assets and
          other high value items such as nuclei and consulting services are in
          place and adhered to by Perth and Indonesian based operations.

4.   Marketing
     4.1  Communicate with Pearlautore International (and other wholesale
          organisations as required) regarding harvest forecasts, pearl prices
          and terms offered by customers, marketing strategies and other value
          adding opportunities;
     4.2  Negotiate selling contracts with pearl wholesalers as required;
     4.3  Maintain personal contact with individuals and organisations in the
          pearl industry on behalf of the company;
     4.4  Where possible, provide feedback to field operations to ensure that
          the most valuable pearl types in relation to colour, size and shape
          are being produced.

5.   Operational
     5.1  Ensure that the best practice oyster husbandry techniques are adopted
          in the field for the best possible pearl production results;
     5.2  Ensure complete documentation of technology, know how and operational
          procedures to ensure smooth succession in the event of key managers
          leaving the group's employment;
     5.3  Continue to promote the best possible nucleating techniques and
          practices and ensure that staff are sufficiently trained to perform
          this task;
     5.4  Visit Waigeo and other pearl farming sites (if they are developed in
          the future) as required to ensure operations are running as reported;
     5.5  Oversee the planning of pearl harvests, including the review of nuclei
          requirements, followed by the shipment of the pearls from Indonesia
          and customs clearance to Australia.

                                       5