Mark Beyer

The number of Western Australian university students graduating with mining industry qualifications is set to jump this year to 450 but the rapid increase is bringing with it some problems.

Kagara Mining has taken the unusual step of writing to the ASX to explain why it did not obtain shareholder approval for shares and options issued to new managing director Geoff Day.

The Australian Institute of Management Western Australia has recruited one of the top staff at Murdoch University as its new chief executive.

Scottish company Global Energy Group (GEG) has moved into the Australian market by acquiring a majority shareholding in West Perth-based Global Resources Network – GRN Australasia Pty Ltd in a deal

The federal government has established a manufacturing industry taskforce that includes seven politicians, six unionists, two academics and one business lobbyist along with six industry executives.

The people participating in Occupy Wall Street and copycat protests around the world are a muddled bunch but they should not be dismissed out of hand.

Western Australia’s share of national exports has risen to 46 per cent and looks set to rise further.

The Barnett government is living up to its promise to deliver more community infrastructure via public private partnerships, naming three short-listed consortiums to bid for a 350-bed prison develo

Privately owned Bethesda Hospital in Claremont, chaired by former health department boss Neale Fong, has approached the state government to assist with a financing package to buy back its land and

Mount Gibson Iron has agreed to settle a long-running US$114 million dispute with a Chinese steel mill, by signing two off-take agreements that will result in the partial recovery of the money it i

The outcome of last week’s jobs forum in Canberra was sensible, incremental reform, but don’t expect the policy change to have a big impact on local industry.

Engineering and contracting group Downer EDI has recruited John Sheridan as Chief Operating Officer, Downer Australia West, following an internal restructuring.

IT consulting company CSG, which has substantial operations in Perth, said today it has received additional takeover approaches after an indicative $340 million offer from an unnamed bidder la

GR Engineering Services has been awarded two gold industry contracts, and expects a third to follow, bringing total revenue into the business of about $55 million.

Engineering company WorleyParsons has won a contract for construction management services on the onshore component of the Wheatstone liquefied natural gas (LNG) project.

The federal government has announced two initiatives designed to prompt major project developers and state governments to offer more opportunities to local industry in their purchasing decisions.

Liquor regulations have been liberalised for the Perth 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships later this year, though the changes will only apply to 14 restaurants in Fremantle.

The state government has formally commenced planning for a new gas pipeline between Bunbury and Albany, as negotiations continue with Grange Resources, whose Southdown iron ore project will be critica

The Australian Securities Exchange is evaluating stricter rules for the disclosure of reserves and resources by listed mining and oil & gas companies, in order to align Australian standards wit

Recent debate over the state’s coal mines and energy utilities seems to have confused the issues of ownership and industry regulation.

FROM the Pilbara to Ghana, to Norway and North America, the views of participants in the WA Business News boardroom forum reflect those of the hundreds of listed companies in the junior mi

ALONG with finance, having access to appropriate infrastructure, such as ports and railways, is another critical factor for mining companies.

‘BORROWER beware’ is the advice from experienced mining and finance industry professionals wary about a surge in the number of non-traditional lenders moving into Australia.

As the big mining houses just get bigger, junior miners are seeking solutions to some of their issues.

The flurry of international alliances and branding changes that are transforming the Perth legal market look set to continue.

Wesfarmers has appointed expatriate West Australian business executive Dene Rogers as managing director of its retail chain, Target.

Africa-focused copper producer Anvil Mining, which was established in Perth, has announced a friendly takeover offer from Chinese group Minmetals Resources, valuing the company at $1.3 billion

The global economy is officially in a “dangerous phase” yet Western Australia’s unique circumstances provide cause for cautious optimism.

Cameron Shephard brings a family history in land development to his new role as state president of the UDIA.

THIS week’s good news on the resources front – the formal go-ahead of the $29 billion Wheatstone gas project – has quickly turned into a political stoush over the issue of local content.

Chevron expects that 50 per cent of the spending on development of its Wheatstone gas project, which has a capital cost of $29 billion, will go to Australian industry.

Cockburn Cement, which is at the centre of a long-running political controversy over its environmental management, has been charged with causing pollution by allegedly failing to contain lime