Matt Mckenzie

Grattan Institute energy program director Tony Wood has said the state government should proceed, but move cautiously, toward full retail contestability in the local electricity market, speaking at the Energy in WA conference today.

Sydney-based gas producer AWE plans to upgrade its resource estimate for the Waitsia gas field in the Perth Basin in coming months after a recent drilling campaign showed the field extends further eastward than initially thought.

SPECIAL REPORT: More than $1.6 billion of renewable energy projects are proposed for the South West Interconnected System, but their success may hinge on how the government handles two regulatory issues.

SPECIAL REPORT: As WA households benefit from increased competition in gas retailing, the electricity sector wants to be able to compete with Synergy in providing to small customers, with some industry members calling for a reduction in the contestability threshold to 20 megawatt hours.

Perth is the world’s seventh most liveable city for the second year running, according to The Economist’s Intelligence Unit, while Melbourne continues a winning streak as the world's number one, a position it has held since 2011.

The state’s first early stage venture capital limited partnership is one of three funds announced by Western Australian money managers this year, and one of two in a joint project by Cottesloe-based View Street Partners and Nedlands-based Mac Equity.

THE 2016-17 financial year marked the start of a recovery for Western Australian merchandise exports, which were up 20 per cent to be worth nearly $121 billion in the year to June.

SPECIAL REPORT: There is a range of places for small businesses and startups to access support, but technological change means some are rethinking their approach. Click through for the updated BNIQ list of SME and startup business centres.

The state government plans to prepare reforms to allow third-party access in the North West Interconnected System, the Pilbara’s electricity network, ready for a cabinet decision in March 2018, in a move that would end years of impasse.