Business News

Western Australia's unemployment rate rose to 6.6 per cent in November despite 8,500 jobs being created, while the national unemployment rate has remained unchanged even though the economy added far more jobs than expected in November.

Former Metropolitan Cemeteries Board director Dominique Mecoy will take the helm at Leadership WA in the new year, replacing Robin McClellan who served in the role for two years.

Engineering and construction contractor Monadelphous has secured a series of contracts worth about $110 million, including a three-year deal for work at the Muja power station in Collie.

RMA Energy has appointed Jun Lyu and Ying Liu as non-executive director and non-executive chair respectively.

Listed company Mineral Commodities has signed a memorandum of understanding to assess the use of Doral's fused alumina plant in Kwinana for downstream processing of natural flake graphite from its proposed mine in WA's great southern region.

Pilbara Minerals has announced multiple changes to its Pilgangoora lithium project, with the company planning to: spend an extra $50 million on development; export unprocessed ore to boost early cash flow; and outsource ore crushing to Mineral Resources.

Plymouth Minerals has tapped investors for $6.5 million through a strongly supported share placement to develop its San Jose lithium project in Spain.

Mincor Resources will ramp-up its exploration activities at its Kambalda nickel project near Kalgoorlie after the company announced a $9 million capital raising.

Rob James has been appointed non-executive director of Thred.

The latest insolvency statistics indicate that the mining industry shake-out is slowing, with a significant decline in insolvencies in recent months for the industry compared with 2016.

Belmont-based building company Pindan has been selected to complete the first stage of a $23.8 million government project upgrading infrastructure for a remote Aboriginal community.

A joint venture between Njamal Services and Pilbara Resource Group has secured a 12-month labour contract with BGC Contracting at the Mt Webber iron ore mine in the Pilbara.

Aspiring minerals sands miner Sheffield Resources has signed an offtake agreement with a Chinese processor for more than half the zircon concentrate produced at its planned $348 million Thunderbird project near Derby.

Interpose Holdings has appointed Eric de Mori as non-executive director, following the resignation of Justin Barton from the board.

ICON Engineering has secured a subsea rig interface contract with Woodside for the Greater Enfield oil development off Exmouth.

Mineral Resources has launched a $484 million takeover bid for oil and gas group AWE amid the ongoing battle for control of the Waitsia gas field north of Perth.

Three senior government ministers faced the cameras this morning to promote plans for a new high school in Subiaco, which will link with shared public open space at the neighbouring football oval.

Perth-based shipbuilder Austal has signed a memorandum of understanding with JR Kyushu Jet Ferry to develop a new high-speed trimaran passenger ferry for the company’s Japan-to-South Korea route.

David Fyfe has been appointed non-executive director of RBR Group, an international labour services company.

EY’s Perth managing partner, Mike Anghie, is planning to join APM as its chief executive, four months after advising Quadrant Private Equity on the purchase of a 60 per cent stake in what is Australia’s largest privately owned human services company.

BGC Contracting announced today that it has been awarded two contracts with mining giant BHP Billiton at its Pilbara iron ore facilities.

Belmont-based Zenith Energy has signed a power purchase agreement to build a 15-megawatt power station at Gascoyne Resources’ Dalgaranga gold project.

Tikforce has appointed Madhukar Bhalla as company secretary, following the resignation of Roland Berzins from the role.

The state parliament has passed legislation today that seeks to guarantee Western Australian businesses a larger share of government contracts, after the auditor general found major flaws in the existing Buy Local policy in a report tabled earlier this week.

Junior explorer Walkabout Resources will tap investors for up to $10 million through a placement and rights issue as the company continues exploration at its African projects.

The ASX is set to adopt blockchain-based technology for its clearing and settlement process, after announcing today that it would replace the current Clearing House Electronic Subregister System.

West Perth-based Gascoyne Resources has secured a $60 million debt facility with two major Australian banks as it aims for its Dalgaranga gold project to be in production in mid-2018.

Minerals explorer Nelson Resources started trading on the ASX today after raising $5 million from investors by way of an initial public offer.

Ausdrill has advised that longstanding chair Terry O'Connor will be stepping down from the board, and current deputy chair Ian Cochrane will take over as chair.

The auditor general has found major flaws in the state government’s Buy Local policy, with concerns regarding data collection leaving agencies unsure if the policy is benefitting local businesses.

Aspiring gold miner KIN Mining has signed a binding term sheet for a $35 million debt package with Canada-based Sprott Private Resource Lending.

The Australian economy expanded at a slower-than-expected rate in the three months to September, however WA’s domestic economy appears to be on the mend, growing 0.9 per cent for the quarter.