Michael Ramsey

The Clough AMEC joint venture has been awarded a two-year contract extension worth $150 million to continue to provide operations and maintenance services at ConocoPhillips' Bayu-Undan oil and gas facilities in the Timor Sea.

Terry Redman has been elected as the new leader of the WA Nationals, replacing Brendon Grylls who yesterday confirmed he would step down from the Nationals leadership and from state cabinet.

West Perth explorer Azure Minerals has raised $2.1 million through a share placement as it looks to undertake further drilling at its Cascada and Promontorio projects in Mexico.

Monadelphous Group has flagged softer revenue levels in the second half of the 2014 financial year but says its final revenue figures will be dependent on a number of major tenders still to be awarded.

Premier Colin Barnett won't guarantee the WA Nationals will retain the key regional development portfolio after Brendon Grylls confirmed he would step down from the Nationals' leadership and state cabinet in the coming weeks.

Forge Group has requested a third extension to its voluntary trading suspension after admitting that the scale of losses on two power station projects won't be known until it completes negotiations with a customer and key sub-contractor.

Emeco Holdings expects improved trading conditions at its operations in Canada and Chile but still anticipates a net operating loss for the 2014 financial year as it struggles to combat ongoing softness in its main commodity sectors of thermal coal and gold.

Downer EDI is the latest contractor to be awarded work at Hancock Prospecting's $10 billion Roy Hill iron ore project, as new reports suggest the project is close to securing its long-awaited debt financing.

A former director of defunct Perth property developer Ocean Key Holdings has been found guilty of stealing more than $820,000 after an investigation by the corporate watchdog.

Sandalwood producer TFS Corporation has been hit with a second strike but has survived a board spill after more than a quarter of its shareholders voted against adopting the company's remuneration report for the second consecutive year.

Mermaid Marine says its trading performance will be weaker than expected with a number of key projects pushed back to the second half of the year.

Forge Group says performance issues at two of its power station projects are likely to affect its earnings guidance, with the company extending a voluntary trading suspension as it holds discussions with financiers.

West Perth-based gold explorer Golden Rim Resources has lined up $4 million in funding under an agreement with global financier RMB Resources as it looks towards completion of a bankable feasibility study at its Balogo project in Burkina Faso.

Premier Colin Barnett has defended the government's plans to sell the Kwinana Bulk Terminal to Len Buckeridge in the hopes of bringing to an end the BGC chairman's $1 billion lawsuit against the state.

A Supreme Court jury has returned its first verdicts in the trial of Ausdrill managing director Ron Sayers and Barminco founder Peter Bartlett, who are facing charges over an alleged plot to defraud the tax office.

The University of Western Australia has again dominated WA's portion of the latest round of federal government research grants, though the state's funding share continues to be underweight relative to its population.

Uranium hopeful Cameco has released an environmental review and management program for its Kintyre project in the east Pilbara.

Energy giant Chevron expects to start building a new Perth waterfront headquarters in three years time after the state government touted the oil and gas giant as the first major owner-occupier at Elizabeth Quay.

Osborne Park-based technology firm Stochastic Simulation has launched new software which it claims will enable oil and gas companies to achieve overnight a level of subsurface analysis which would have previously taken years.

Viento Group's contracting business has won a $2.7 million contract to provide rail works for Fortescue Metals Group.

The liquidators of timber plantation assets formerly owned by collapsed managed investment scheme Great Southern may have found a buyer for the assets, with an investment trust managed by Sydney-based company New Forests agreeing to purchase the plantations.

The state's housing construction market is tipped to remain at its strongest level in years on the back of a 34 per cent increase in dwelling starts in 2012-13.

More than $123 million has been wiped from the market value of mining services firm Ausdrill after the company forecast a more than 50 per cent fall in its annual earnings.

Shares in Subiaco-based explorer Resource and Investment have closed the day's trade higher after feasibility studies revealed low operating costs at its gold projects near Meekatharra.

Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting is set to boost its stake in oil and gas explorer Sun Resources, agreeing to invest a further $2 million in the company in exchange for around 65 million shares.

Drilling contractor Swick Mining Services is planning to invest up to $6.5 million in a Swedish mineral analysis technology company as it looks to turn around its performance.

Forge Group has suspended its shares two days after calling a trading halt as it is still unable to determine the full extent of performance issues at two of its power station projects.

St John of God Health Care is set to bolster its presence in Western Australia with the acquisition of the 205-bed Mercy Hospital in Mount Lawley.

Western Australia's International Centre of Radio Astronomy Research is amongst the global research institutions to secure detailed design work on the $2 billion Square Kilometre Array radio telescope project, though the lion's share of the pre-construction work is set to be conducted overseas.

A fourth consecutive month of growth in the market capitalisation of Western Australia's top 100 listed companies is a sign of renewed business confidence within the WA economy, according to market analysts.

Atrum Coal has completed an $18.5 million equity raising as it looks to accelerate development at its Groundhog anthracite project in Canada.

Mirabela Nickel's problems have taken a turn for the worse after one of its two customers flagged that it would seek to immediately exit a concentrate sales agreement on the basis of a force majeure, or unavoidable accident, at its nickel smelter.