What is the common link between metalworkers’ union boss Jock Ferguson, Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive John Langoulant and recent BHP Billiton recruit Ian Fletcher?
The big changes at the top of the state government over the past six months have put the new premier, Alan Carpenter, firmly at the head of WA Business News’ fifth annual ‘Most Influential’ survey.
Most company directors would consider joining the board of global mining giant BHP Billiton the peak of their career, but for Michael Chaney it was a mere stepping stone.
Loyal Fremantle Dockers supporters will know that Premier Alan Carpenter is an avid fan but they probably don’t realise he is regularly accompanied to games by his chief of staff, Rita Saffioti, and his principal media adviser, Guy Houston.
The West Perth of yesteryear, with its avenues of leafy vistas and sprawling mansions housing some of Western Australia’s wealthiest families, was always destined to become the burgeoning business centre of the 21st century.
Potential tenants may have to look beyond West Perth’s ‘golden mile’ as the dearth of property sales and record low vacancy rates stymie those eager to position themselves in the West Perth market.
From the bustling sidewalks of Hay Street during lunchtime to the chaotic rush of shoppers eager for a bargain at Harbour Town, West Perth has developed a vibrancy and uniqueness that offers an attractive alternative to Perth’s central business district.
The Australian mining industry has provided a strong platform for contract drilling and drilling services companies such as Ausdrill, Brandrill and Imdex, but attempts to move into the international market have met with mixed success.
Nick Archibald, the founder of pioneering Western Australian minerals software developer Fractal Graphics, is close to completing his biggest ever deal as chief executive of listed Canadian company Geoinformatics Exploration Inc.
Listed Nedlands company ISS Group Ltd is seeking to build on its strong position in the Australian market to become a global supplier of specialist software for process plants in the oil and gas and mining sectors.
The biofuels sector’s growing mainstream attraction may be a relatively recent phenomenon, but local company Blue Diesel’s involvement in the business can be traced back to well before the current debate over alternative fuels began.
The move to biofuels may not be the silver bullet resolution to our energy problems, but WA is in the thick of research, development and increasing production of these new greenhouse neutral options.
Amidst environmental concerns, increasing petrol prices, and predictions by some industry experts that Australia’s oil reserves will be near exhaustion by 2012, biofuels have emerged from relative obscurity to take centre stage on the renewable energy age
The West Coast Eagles and Fremantle Dockers produced strong profit results last year but a close analysis of their annual accounts shows that West Coast is much stronger financially than its cross-town rival.
Native title agreements reached in Western Australia during the past year have a major focus on providing employment and business opportunities for Aboriginal people.
The federal government provides just more than $50 million each year to native title representative bodies (NTRB), yet both business and Aboriginal groups agree this is grossly inadequate.
The mercantile industry in Western Australia has emerged from a period of rationalisation and consolidation, and insiders predict there’s more to come.
Legal action against nickel miner Minara Resources has provided a stark reminder that negotiating a native title agreement is not the end of the matter for mining companies.
A quick statistical snapshot neatly sums up the legal difficulties associated with native title.
Presently, there are 606 native title applications awaiting resolution and most have been before the Federal Court for a matter of years.
