News Articles for Jim Engelke

Business News' inaugural list of those who live or spend much of their year in the north-west and influential policy and investment decisions in the region.

A $40 million cotton gin facility has been approved by an assessment panel, with the community hoping the project would activate the state's economy and agricultural industry.

Development of a cotton gin in northern WA is set to proceed after ASX company Namoi Cotton, NSW wheat grower Ron Greentree and the federal government backed the project.

When farming activity started in the Ord River irrigation area in the 1960s, the initial focus was on cotton.

The co-operative that distributes water in the Ord River irrigation area has scored a big court victory over the state government, retaining its current water allocation to support the development of new cotton farms. The state government had wanted to slash the Ord Irrigation Co-operative's annual water allocation by one third.

Listed sandalwood producer TFS Corporation and China-backed Kimberley Agricultural Investment have been selected as the preferred proponents to develop 5,000 hectares in the Ord River irrigation area.

The development of the Ord River region in the state's far north will be significantly affected by the tender process for 5,000 hectares of land released by the state government last week.