$650m rescue for power station – The Fin; BHP flags court action against Alinta Energy – The West; Carbon tax mostly bad for business: execs – The Fin; Forrest to splash out almost $300m for Fortescue shares – The West; Carbon tax putting brake on Roy Hill finance: Rinehart - The Aus
$650m rescue for power station
The parent company of one of Australia's dirtiest power stations, Hazelwood in Victoria, has been forced to bail out its subsidiary only days before the start of the carbon tax, as the federal government's former climate change adviser flagged a shake-out of the national electricity market. The Fin
BHP flags court action against Alinta Energy
The legal fallout from the $2.4 billion Varanus Island explosion continues to build, with global giant BHP Billiton exploring a Supreme Court damages claim against its gas wholesaler Alinta Energy. The West
Carbon tax mostly bad for business: execs
Most Australian businesses believe the carbon tax is here to stay but many are pessimistic about its economic impact and believe the price is too high. The Fin
Forrest to splash out almost $300m for Fortescue shares
Andrew Forrest was last night planning to splash $294 million on Fortescue Metals Group shares in the hope his show of confidence in the iron ore miner may breathe life into its share price. The West
Carbon tax putting brake on Roy Hill finance: Rinehart
Gina Rinehart has issued a surprisingly downbeat assessment of her chances of developing the $9 billion Roy Hill iron ore project in the Pilbara, saying ‘‘the world’s highest carbon tax’’ and spiralling costs were making it tough to raise finance. The Aus
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: An empty 737 plane chartered by the federal government was used to transfer a single asylum seeker from Christmas Island to Perth on Saturday morning.
Page 3: The state government should ban radar detectors immediately to prevent hoons avoiding speeding fines, according to one of the state's top road safety experts.
Page 4: Mining billionaire Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting has indicated it will sell its interest in Fairfax if Mrs Rinehart is not offered board seats free of “unsuitable conditions” and has cast her as the media company's “white knight”.
Three of the nation's leading editors have quit as Fairfax Media radically overhauls its news business.
Page 5: An explosion in the number of families with young children living in inner-city areas has sparked fears that already stretched schools and childcare facilities will struggle to cope with the looming influx.
Page 10: The City of Subiaco has rejected the prospect of a high-rise project on the old Pavilion Markets site but backed redevelopment to a maximum of six storeys.
Page 16: Skippers Aviation, one of the state's major independent airlines, has taken Perth Airport to the competition watchdog over alleged restrictions to its future.
Business: The legal fallout from the $2.4 billion Varanus Island explosion continues to build, with global giant BHP Billiton exploring a Supreme Court damages claim against its gas wholesaler Alinta Energy.
Analysts at influential broking firm UBS have added their weight to industry talk that BHP Billiton will progress a piecemeal development of Port Hedland's outer harbour rather than a one-off big ticket expansion.
Andrew Forrest was last night planning to splash $294 million on Fortescue Metals Group shares in the hope his show of confidence in the iron ore miner may breathe life into its share price.
Gina Rinehart's bitter family feud has thrown the timing of her $10 billion Roy Hill iron ore mine into doubt, with her company Roy Hill Holdings describing a 2014 start date as “optimistic”.
Struggling surfwear retailer Billabong is expected to fend off more takeover bids after its share price dived to its lowest level.
Controversial businessman Frank Timis has been cleared to take an executive role at his two Perth-based oil and gas plays, two years after a bruising battle with the Australian Securities Exchange that saw them list instead on the low-profile National Stock Exchange.
Another piece of Atlas Iron's $252 million expansion plan to take its annual Pilbara production capacity to 10 million tonnes by June next year has clicked into place after it received the final environmental tick to allow its Mt Dove mine to go ahead.
Shares in Paladin Energy recovered ground after the Perth uranium miner said it expected to announce as many as three deals to sell stakes in some of its projects within the next four months.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: The parent company of one of Australia's dirtiest power stations, Hazelwood in Victoria, has been forced to bail out its subsidiary only days before the start of the carbon tax, as the federal government's former climate change adviser flagged a shake-out of the national electricity market.
Billabong founder Gordon Merchant has thrown the door open to another takeover bid, saying he felt “bad” about rejecting a private equity offer four months ago and was now prepared to accept less.
The head of the Council of Australian Governments reform council has accused the Gillard government of undermining Kevin Rudd's core principles for federal-state relations by usurping state responsibility for hospitals, schools and disability services.
Productivity Commission chairman Gary Banks has condemned government bailouts for troubled industries, saying the payments damage better-performing parts of the economy.
Page 4: Victoria has thrown its weight behind the call from Western Australian and Queensland for the Northern Territory to be removed from the goods and services tax carve-up and instead get its money straight from federal coffers.
Unions and employer groups will face tighter regulations and tougher disclosure requirements after a key vote on the federal government's legislative response to the Health Services Union scandal.
Page 7: Most Australian businesses believe the carbon tax is here to stay but many are pessimistic about its economic impact and believe the price is too high.
Page 8: Santos will boost compensation for NSW landowners affected by its coal seam gas operations and pay farmers for maintaining and monitoring equipment on their land as part of a new initiative expected to garner support for the controversial activities.
Page 9: Well-known Perth businessman Malcolm Day's company Adultshop.com is pursuing a rival sex product retailer in the Federal Court over trademark infringement.
Page 10: Mining magnate Gina Rinehart has threatened to sell her 18.7 per cent stake in Fairfax Media and possibly repurchase it at a later date if the stalemate between her and the board persists.
Page 17: Perpetual is betting on wealthy clients to underpin growth, after unveiling plans to axe 580 jobs and sell its mortgage lending business in an effort to slash $50 million in costs.
Fortescue Metals Group chairman Andrew Forrest was last night seeking to boost his exposure to the iron ore miner by purchasing an additional 1.9 per cent stake to take his holding to about 33 per cent.
Page 19: Fund managers have warned Kerry Stokes against a $1.5 billion-plus takeover offer for pay TV company Consolidated Media Holdings.
Page 21: Australia's four largest banks have cemented their position as the world's most profitable, helped by low rates of impaired loans, strong cost management and an implicit guarantee from the government.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: A second major coal-fired electricity generator has been forced to seek a multi-million dollar bailout from its offshore shareholders, rather than bankers, ahead of the introduction of the carbon tax next week.
Three of the nation’s most senior editors have quit their posts in a day of unprecedented upheaval in the newspaper industry as Fairfax Media overhauled the leadership of east coast newsrooms in the march to embrace digital publishing.
Julia Gillard has implored Tony Abbott to reopen talks on the restoration of offshore processing of asylum-seekers, insisting Australians want politicians to cut a deal to restore the practice after last week’s deaths of about 90 people when their boat sank off Christmas Island.
Polling suggests at least one of the federal balance-of-power independent MPs — Tasmanian Andrew Wilkie — can defy predictions and retain his seat at the coming election.
Page 2: The coal-seam gas industry has been put on notice to give landholders full information in land access negotiations, after a Supreme Court judge found a central Queensland cattle grazier was denied procedural fairness when negotiating with a resource company.
Workplace Relations Minister Bill Shorten has ordered the Fair Work Ombudsman to probe allegations Optus is sacking Australian workers and replacing them with foreigners in breach of federal laws.
Page 4: Voters are now the most pessimistic they have been about their future livelihood and living costs since the height of the global financial crisis in 2008.
The chief of Western Australia’s environmental watchdog will single-handedly recommend whether the $34 billion James Price Point gas hub should go ahead, after other members of his agency were ruled out of the decision due to conflicts of interest.
Page 5: A key backer of Kevin Rudd’s return to the Labor leadership earlier this year has reignited debate on the former prime minister’s pet subject of Labor Party reform to reduce the power of factions and union leaders.
The builder of Labor’s National Broadband Network has been told to make its tender processes more transparent in a bid to avoid cost blowouts in the $36 billion project.
Page 8: Fairfax Media’s biggest shareholder, Gina Rinehart, has described herself as a ‘‘white knight’’ who can save the ailing publisher, but she is now threatening to sell her shares unless she wins board seats with the power to hire and fire editors.
Business: Perpetual has won market support for an aggressive plan to slash its workforce and cut directors’ fees, while flagging a big 2012 profit downgrade.
Gina Rinehart has issued a surprisingly downbeat assessment of her chances of developing the $9 billion Roy Hill iron ore project in the Pilbara, saying ‘‘the world’s highest carbon tax’’ and spiralling costs were making it tough to raise finance.
Competition experts are divided on whether Kerry Stokes’s Seven Group would secure the approval of the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission for a takeover bid for James Packer’s Consolidated Media Holdings pay-TV group.
Australia's largest waste management company, Transpacific Industries Group, has joined the growing list of companies downgrading profit estimates ahead of reporting season.
Fortescue Metals Group chairman Andrew Forrest could be set to lift his stake in the iron ore miner beyond 31 per cent amid speculation last night that he was attempting to buy almost $300 million of shares through Morgan Stanley.
Shares in surf, skate and skiwear retailer Billabong have fallen as much as 50 per cent to a record low, wiping out more than $200 million in shareholder value, after the company slashed earnings forecasts and sold $225m worth of new shares at a steep discount to market value.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:
Page 1: Nineteen years after his parents were brutally stabbed to death in their Sydney home, Jeffrey Gilham has been acquitted of their murders by the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal.
Page 2: Three Fairfax Media editors announced they would step down as the company went through one of the most dramatic days in The Sydney Morning Herald's history.
Page 3: The NSW government admits it is unlikely to be unable to shift half of Sydney's new housing developments to the city's fringe.
World: Egypt rejoices as Mohamed Mursi becomes the country's first democratically elected civilian president.
Business: The surfwear retailer Billabong's share price plunged from $1.83 from last week to 96 cents at close on Monday.
Sport: Senior NSW players say they are finally ready to end Queensland's six-year domination of the State of Origin at next week's series decider.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: Jeffrey Gilham has been acquitted of the murder of his parents.
Page 2: Three of Fairfax Media's editors have stepped down from their positions at The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
Page 3: Labor has signalled it is ready to compromise on its immigration policy as members of the coalition openly criticise their own policy.
World: Scientists are working on a way to try to tap into Stephen Hawking's brain.
Business: Australia's big four banks have been declared the most profitable in the world.
Sport: Parramatta's Jarryd Hayne says his game has improved due to Ricky Stuart having confidence in him.
THE AGE:
Page 1: Mining magnate Gina Rinehart tells Fairfax she will sell her shares in the company if the board does not agree to her demands. Aboriginal schools have failed at achieving their main purpose of returning Koori students to mainstream schools.
Page 2: The Age editor-in-chief Paul Ramadge resigns amid major changes saying it is the right time for him to move on. John Hancock, the only son of billionaire Gina Rinehart, attempts to gain access to a family trust worth millions.
Page 3: Internal emails contradict government claims surrounding last Friday evening's release of public service job cuts.
World: New president Mohammed Morsi has to convince West he will keep his promise to govern for all Egyptians.
Business: Surfwear retailer Billabong wipes out $229 million as it comes out of a trading halt on the back of an earnings downgrade and a $225 million capital raising.
Sport: West Coast under new pressure as AFL website highlights dubious hand disposals in Saturday's loss to Collingwood.
THE CANBERRA TIMES:
Page 1: A secret defence facility under construction at HMAS Harman outside Canberra has suffered a massive cost blowout.
Page 2: PM Julia Gillard indicates she is prepared to make changes to end the political stalemate over asylum seekers.
Page 3: Australian man thought murdered in Bali.
World: Germany has told Greece to stop asking for more help and get on with implementing austerity reforms.
Business: Surfwear retailer Billabong experiences wipeout on the market, losing $229 million.
Sport: Samantha Stosur makes her way into the second round at Wimbledon with a straight sets demolition of Carla Suarez Navarro.
