Mark Beyer

The state government is utilising rarely used powers under the Corporations Act to take control of $1.7 billion owed to creditors of the failed Bell Group and ensure a big slice of that money is distributed to Western Australian taxpayers through the Insurance Commission of WA.

TPG Telecom has quickly won backing from iiNet after lifting its takeover offer to $9.55 per share, with cash and scrip alternatives, as it fends off a rival bid from Dodo owner M2 Group.

The state government will introduce legislation into parliament tomorrow designed to finalise the long-running Bell Group legal case, in which the Insurance Commission of WA and other creditors are fighting over a $1.7 billion payout.

GREG Evans has got off to a flying start in his new role as KPMG’s global leader of mining M&A, with one of the firm’s major clients announcing its first takeover bid last week.

Engineering firm Clough and its recently acquired US subsidiary CH.IV International have been appointed owner's engineer on the planned Magnolia LNG project in the US state of Louisiana.

CBH Group signed an interim access agreement with Brookfield Rail "under protest" late on Friday, allowing CBH to start running its rolling stock on Brookfield's rail network, but the two companies

Perth will need to build an extra 800,000 homes over the next 35 years to accommodate population growth, a new report has concluded, and nearly half of these homes will need to be in existing suburbs.

Perth home prices have ticked slightly higher in April to a median price of $520,000, which equates to an increase of just 0.3 per cent over the past year

Apartment developer Finbar Group is planning to revise its Civic Heart project in South Perth, after agreeing to purchase a neighbouring property that includes the heritage-listed Australia Post building on Mill Point Rd.

KPMG has acquired West Perth accounting and advisory practice Hayes Knight (WA), saying this will be the first of a series of acquisitions to bolster its private client practice nationally.

Perth-based contractor NRW Holdings, which is best known for its work on Pilbara iron ore projects, is the only local company in three consortiums that have been short-listed to bid for the $2 billion Forrestfield-Airport rail link.

Moore Stephens will become the 11th largest accounting firm in Western Australia after striking a merger agreement with the Perth office of UHY Haines Norton.

The federal government has contracted four groups in Western Australia to run a new support network designed to lift completion rates for apprentices, but has caused disquiet by excluding a major group-training organisation from the scheme.

The fate of Perth companies iiNet and Amcom Telecommunications rests with Sydney competitor TPG Telecom and its reclusive chairman David Teoh, and possibly with the competition watchdog, after a day of surprises.

Emeco Holdings has entered merger discussions with Queensland-based Orionstone, three weeks after the rival mining equipment supplier proposed a nil-premium merger.

Developers of new residential projects in Perth are looking for ways to co-exist with established industrial activity.

Iron ore miner Mineral Resources is pressing ahead with plans for innovative ‘skyrail’ and trans-shipping projects in the Pilbara, saying that together they can cut $25 per tonne off its operating costs.

The receivers who took charge of the Windimurra vanadium project in February have put the trouble-plagued mine up for sale, with Gresham Advisory Partners appointed to find a buyer.

Fremantle Ports has defended plans to privatise its automotive terminal, after the competition watchdog warned that putting a monopoly service in the hands of a private company could lead to higher prices for car buyers.

Five weeks after announcing a $7.2 million rights issue, and three weeks after getting a loan from two of its directors, Viento Group has called a trading halt on its shares while it considers funding options.

LandCorp has launched the first-stage of its ambitious Cockburn Coast redevelopment project, which it envisages will become home to 12,000 people in medium and high-density housing.

BHP Billiton has deferred planned capital spending to improve its operations at Port Hedland harbour, after better-than-expected performance from its existing assets enabled the mining giant to lift its production guidance for the current financial year.

Property developers with projects worth as little as $2 million and as much as $10 million can choose to have their proposals evaluated by a Development Assessment Panel rather than their local council.

Four months after listing on the ASX, technology company DTI Group has slashed its revenue and profit guidance for the current financial year after being hit by delays in the awarding of prospective contracts, deferred deliveries to the US market and softer sales in the US.

Rio Tinto's iron ore shipments have fallen 12 per cent during the March quarter, a period when it was largely blamed for oversupplying and pushing down the price of Australia's top export.

China has become WA’s biggest wine export destination, but finding the best way to market is still a learning experience for local producers.

Treasurer Mike Nahan said today Western Australia might get an extra $660 million from Canberra to make up for the shortfall in GST grants but conceded the amount, timing and use of the funds, were all yet to be decided.

Junior manganese miner Kaboko Mining has been placed into receivership, nine months after a falling out with its major funding partner, Noble Resources.

Premier Colin Barnett was left angry and disappointed after today's meeting of the nation's leaders failed to resolve the dispute over Western Australia's share of GST funds.

Hartleys has lifted funds under management above $1 billion for the first time, a milestone that new chairman Ian Parker believes will help the stockbroking firm weather the current downturn in resources.

Woodside Petroleum chairman Michael Chaney has set himself an ambitious goal, telling shareholders he wants to more than double the number of women on the company’s board over the next two years.

Sydney company ACFS Port Logistics has outlined development plans for an industrial site at Rous Head, after announcing a joint venture with Asciano subsidiary Patrick Port Logistics.