Tom Zaunmayr

Independent Fremantle candidate Kate Hulett would lobby to bar media moguls from owning gas companies should she be voted into state parliament next month.

Fortescue’s half-yearly profit has more than halved to US$1.55 billion as lower iron ore prices eat into bumper revenues recorded this time last year.

Japanese trading house Mitsui & Co will take a US$5.3 billion stake in Rio Tinto’s 6.8 billion tonne Rhodes Ridge iron ore project in the Pilbara.

Three of WA’s largest indigenous businesses have recorded substantial revenue increases, but labour costs are eating into profits.

Unionisation of the Pilbara’s iron ore industry could curtail BHP’s plans to invest in new mines, according to the company’s boss, Mike Henry.

Copper’s importance to BHP’s portfolio is growing as easing Chinese demand for iron ore cuts into the big Australian’s profit.

Disgraced-ex Labor parliamentarian Barry Urban has died in hospital three months after being attacked outside a business he managed in Kelmscott.

A Pilbara manganese developer has looked at Kwinana, Geraldton and Port Hedland as sites to for a possible refinery, while noting import and finance hurdles remain.

A Pilbara native title group pursuing a large renewable energy project and compensation from Fortescue is now the largest indigenous corporation in the state.

OPINION: It was a bad week for the WA National Party, the Liberals went big on health promises and criticism, and Roger Cook was back on the regional campaign trail.

Western Australia’s grain harvest has eclipsed 20 million tonnes for the third time, fuelled by a warm growing season and record plantings.

The WA Liberal Party has committed $400,000 to a masterplan for the redevelopment of the South Perth foreshore.

WA’s freight rail network is a major bugbear for business, Deputy Premier Rita Saffioti says, as the state government begins negotiations to buy it back.

An oat processing mill planned on Perth’s south-eastern fringe and backed by former international rugby player Dane Haylett-Petty has been submitted to the local shire.

A Pilbara ammonia upstart has struck a deal with Pilbara Ports to probe exporting ammonia from the Port of Dampier.

A WA Liberal government would plough $140 million into training new doctors and specialists, encouraging student residencies, and enabling free post-hospital check-ups.

Owners of a controversial WA lead mine which was once the largest in the world have gone into administration after a failed bid to fund a processing plant.

OPINION: The writs have been served and the politicians are off and patting dogs and kissing babies as the race to lead the state officially began this week.

The state government will begin building another desalination plant in the Pilbara by the end of the decade to ease pressure on the region’s aquifers.

OPINION: As misinformation and the digital world take over political discourse online, it is heartening to know the internet is still no match for good old-fashioned face time.

A WA Liberal state government would put $10 million toward a council-backed plan to redevelop Cottesloe’s ailing beachside amenities.

Nadia Budihardjo and Tom Zaunmayr discuss a looming Pilbara water crisis.

Concern is growing about water use in Australia’s economic powerhouse, with another water-intensive industry on the way.

Former deputy mayor Tim Turner has resigned from Port Hedland’s trouble-plagued council, citing a lack of willingness to stay on in the role.

The federal government has funded a feasibility study into a common use critical minerals processing plant which the state government already budgeted $200 million build.

A north-west university hub will set up shop in Kununurra by mid-2025 under a federal government program to improve access to tertiary education in regional Australia.

The majority shareholder of Pilbara iron ore junior Red Hawk Mining has accepted Fortescue’s offer to take over the company hours before deadline.

Low-impact miners and explorers will be eligible for fast-tracked approvals under reforms hailed by the resources industry as “paper killing legislation”.

OPINION: The wild west was the centre of attention this week as Labor and the Nationals promised cash to solve two of Kalgoorlie’s biggest issues.

Mineral Resources remains upbeat about its financial position as market forces and the fallout from founder Chris Ellison’s tax affairs weigh on the business.

Rio Tinto will take its Pilbara arts exhibition across the seas to London for the first time to mark the 20th anniversary of the event.

Fortescue's ability to work around Port Hedland's congested export space and negate headwinds in the iron ore price were attractive to Red Hawk Mining's board.