A major Aboriginal corporation has launched two new ventures to help other Aboriginal groups in legal disputes after securing a $125 million compensation payout from Rio Tinto.
WA's largest indigenous trust has reported a huge jump in annual revenue after recording $166 million in royalty payments from Rio Tinto but this was not enough to resolve a long-running dispute.
New financial reports show a handful of Aboriginal groups gaining more income from mining royalties but others going backwards, while the sector as a whole remains the poor cousin.
An Aboriginal charity that was paid $47 million in mining royalties last year could find itself out of pocket after BHP concluded it had paid too much over an extended period.
Mining giant Rio Tinto has paid $125 million to a major Aboriginal group in the Pilbara and is likely to contribute more in future after underpaying royalties over many years.
One of WA's largest Aboriginal corporations says Rio Tinto is not serious in its efforts to modernise a contentious land use agreement, with tens of millions of dollars at stake.
Long-running efforts by Attorney General John Quigley to increase scrutiny of Aboriginal trusts has culminated in plans for a new regulator with powers akin to a royal commission.
WA's largest Aboriginal health service has come out of administration after appointing a new board and modernising its governance rules, with independent directors given voting powers.
