Fortescue calls for Woodside to be stripped of Browse LNG
Fortescue Metals Group will push for Woodside Petroleum and its partners in the stalled Browse gas project to be stripped of their interests when their current retention leases expire, with the huge but so far undeveloped fields shaping as a key test of the industry’s “use it or lose it” provisions. The Aus
Patrick seeks to bypass striking MUA
Stevedore Patrick will seek to bypass the Maritime Union of Australia by taking the ‘‘unprecedented’’ step of putting a proposed enterprise agreement directly to a vote of its employees. The Fin
WA’s big farms sold to China company
A Shanghai-based company taking Australian Rules football to China is poised to become WA’s biggest landholder after signing deals to buy stations in the Kimberley and Goldfields and farms on the edge of the Wheatbelt. The West
Chinese outbid locals for Kidman prize
A Chinese-led consortium has pipped the Australian bidders for the nation’s largest landholder with an increased $371 million offer for S. Kidman & Co but the controversial deal is still subject to foreign investment approval from the Treasurer, who is not expected to make a decision until after the election. The Fin
LNG producers face Asia price crunch
Australian liquefied natural gas producers including Woodside Petroleum face lower prices when they renegotiate long-term deals with Asian utilities, with new sources of supply including US exports giving buyers the upper hand in contract talks. The Fin
Griffin workers’ legal fear
Dozens of workers at beleaguered Collie coal mine Griffin claim they are bracing for legal action by the operation’s Indian owners after holding an unlawful strike at the weekend. The West
Local build adds 30pc to subs
Confidential Defence analysis shows it will cost about 30 per cent more to build the new fleet of 12 submarines in Australia than to buy them directly from the shipyards of any of the three groups bidding for the massive naval project. The Aus
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Malcolm Turnbull has asked Australians to entrust him with managing the economic transition away from mining, while Bill Shorten says Labor will champion Medicare, schools, renewable energy and a fair tax system, as both leaders fired the opening salvos of the 10-week campaign ahead of the July 2 double dissolution election.
Page 3: Stevedore Patrick will seek to bypass the Maritime Union of Australia by taking the ‘‘unprecedented’’ step of putting a proposed enterprise agreement directly to a vote of its employees.
Page 4: High-income earners, smokers and multinational tax avoiders have firmed as budget targets amid unconfirmed reports the government has come up with $16 billion in savings over four years.
Page 5: The Turnbull government’s proposed changes to media ownership regulation will be shelved until after the federal election as Australia prepares for the first double dissolution since 1987.
Page 8: A Chinese-led consortium has pipped the Australian bidders for the nation’s largest landholder with an increased $371 million offer for S. Kidman & Co but the controversial deal is still subject to foreign investment approval from the Treasurer, who is not expected to make a decision until after the election.
Page 17: Rio Tinto’s struggles to get the software in sync for its driverless trains has forced it to cut its iron-ore production guidance.
The chief executive of online marketplace Redbubble, Martin Hosking, says the soon-to-be-listed tech company has one big advantage compared with WiseTech and Aconex: its product is easily understood by retail investors.
Qantas is likely to take a more conservative approach to the prospect of returning cash to shareholders at its annual results in August because of a weaker domestic market.
Page 19: A merger of Target and Kmart will see shoppers abandon both stores in favour of Big W and cost their owner Wesfarmers hundreds of millions of dollars, the conglomerate has been warned.
Coca-Cola Amatil is set to challenge V and Red Bull for leadership of the $1.2 billion energy drinks market after securing the rights to distribute Monster Energy drinks from arch rival Schweppes.
Page 27: Oil Search managing director Peter Botten has stepped up the rhetoric on the need for closer ties between the company’s two LNG expansion projects in Papua New Guinea after lower commodity prices took the gloss off a record production performance in the March quarter.
Page 28: Australian liquefied natural gas producers including Woodside Petroleum face lower prices when they renegotiate long-term deals with Asian utilities, with new sources of supply including US exports giving buyers the upper hand in contract talks.
The Australian
Page 1: The corporate regulator faces sweeping structural changes to address “material gaps”, an “unsustainable” future and excessive reaction to “public scandal” as the Coalition starts the election campaign fending off demands for a royal commission into banks.
Confidential Defence analysis shows it will cost about 30 per cent more to build the new fleet of 12 submarines in Australia than to buy them directly from the shipyards of any of the three groups bidding for the massive naval project.
Paper, packaging and recycling billionaire Anthony Pratt will today lay down a bold challenge to the agribusiness sector to more than double the nation’s food exports to $100 billion by 2023.
Page 5: Malcolm Turnbull is urging voters to give him their trust as he confirms his plan for a July 2 election and sharpens his attack on Labor over economic management, promising a budget plan to spur investment and enterprise.
Page 6: The Turnbull government is demanding the Transport Workers Union repay a six-figure sum it received to publicise Labor’s Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal before it was abolished by parliament this week.
Page 21: Fortescue Metals Group will push for Woodside Petroleum and its partners in the stalled Browse gas project to be stripped of their interests when their current retention leases expire, with the huge but so far undeveloped fields shaping as a key test of the industry’s “use it or lose it” provisions.
Page 23: Commonwealth Bank has joined peers in cracking down on mortgage lending to borrowers heavily reliant on income from offshore, just days after the Reserve Bank expressed growing concerns about fragilities in the property market.
The West Australian
Page 1: A Shanghai-based company taking Australian Rules football to China is poised to become WA’s biggest landholder after signing deals to buy stations in the Kimberley and Goldfields and farms on the edge of the Wheatbelt.
Page 6: Road safety authorities have been forced to defend WA’s speed camera tactics, denying police union claims the cameras are being used as “revenue raisers” rather than to tackle the road toll.
Page 7: A critical link of the first Perth area connected to Malcolm Turnbull’s preferred NBN model is littered with faults, with live exposed wiring and open rubbish bags used as waterproof seals.
Page 11: The State Government has failed to meet self-imposed targets to reduce spending on media monitoring and abandoned efforts to bring the process in-house.
Page 16: Fremantle inner harbour could triple in capacity to more than two million containers a year before an outer harbour is needed in 25 years.
Page 17: Banks in WA have been accused of squeezing small businesses by reducing the value of their properties and the ratio of debt they are allowed to carry, forcing some to sell assets to make immediate repayments.
Page 18: A controversial plan to double the size of Gracetown, one of Margaret River’s iconic beach hamlets, will get final approval next month after former planning minister John Day signed off on the development.
Page 19: Princess Margaret Hospital has put its eating disorders day program on hold for about five months as part of a wider review of the hospital’s services.
Business: Dozens of workers at beleaguered Collie coal mine Griffin claim they are bracing for legal action by the operation’s Indian owners after holding an unlawful strike at the weekend.
Japanese corporate giant Marubeni has taken a $235 million writedown on the value of its 15 per cent stake in the Roy Hill iron ore project.