Caution needed as Australian economy recovers, says economist

Although the Australian economy has performed better than expected in the current economic climate, Chief Economist of Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Michael Blythe says Australia still needs to be cautious.

Mr Blythe who will be addressing SEAAOC 2009 in Darwin on the 9-11 of September, says the resources industry was one of the reasons the Australian economy defied the global recession.

“Weak as our economy activity may have been, we have had very good results because of the backlog…from the mining boom and the fact that now the global recovery is driven by China,” he said.

Mr Blythe says caution is needed because financial crises weaken recovery in the early stages.

“We’ve got to look for an economy that…is growing at a slower than usual rate,” he says. “That means we haven’t seen the peak in the unemployment rate just yet.”

Mr Blythe says lower interest rates will be in place for some time.

Capital spending will be of the key decisions impacting the economy as it is currently the weakest.

“Certainly only few months ago there were big concerns the way companies were cancelling, deferring their capital spending plans- something that could have deepened or lengthened the downturn in Australia,” Mr Blythe says.

“Now all of a sudden, there’s a global backdrop…It’s the sort of environment where you may see some of the projects…suddenly look a lot more attractive and they’re potentially big drivers of the Australian economy.”

Mr Blythe hopes his presentation will give delegates a better understanding of the global financial crisis and some idea about the risks that will be experienced over the next year or two.

Other speakers include:
The Hon Paul Henderson MLA, Chief Minister of Northern Territory Government, Mr Alfredo Pires, Secretary of State – Natural Resources of Timor-Leste, Joseph Marushack, President of ConocoPhillips Australia, Sean Kildare, General Manager Darwin of Inpex and Mr. Yoichi Norisugi, Director, Secretary General of Nippon GTL Technology Research Association.

www.seaaoc.com

To arrange a media pass, request more information or arrange speaker interviews at the SEAAOC 2009 conference, please contact:
John Wilson
Informa-IIR
02 9080 4107; 0405751012
John.wilson@informa.com.au

Michael Blythe, Chief Economist of Commonwealth Bank of Australia discusses the economy

Michael Blythe, Chief Economist of Commonwealth Bank of Australia, spoke to us about his thoughts on the outlook for the resources industry in light of the current economic climate, the Australian economy over the next 6-12 months and key oil and gas related decisions that will impact the economy, and his upcoming presentation at this year’s SEAAOC in Darwin.

For more information on SEAAOC 2009, visit www.seaaoc.com or contact Customer Service on +61 2 9080 4090.

Adam Dunne of Aura Interactive talks mobile technology

ADAM DUNNE, CEO of AURA Interactive Pty Ltd, talks to us about the future of mobile phones, how businesses are utilising the value of mobile technology and the possibility of a trend to convergence or divergence of mobile phone and notebook computer technology.

He is a speaker at the Digital Media Leaders Forum in Sydney in March 2009.

For more information, go to www.iir.com.au/digital

Chronic pain management critical to retaining workers

Australian workers struggling to manage chronic pain need to regain control over their lives, says Coralie Wales, President of the Chronic Pain Association of Australia.

The good news is they can gain control with community help, she says in an interview.

CORALIE WALES, President of Chronic Pain Australia

One in five people suffer chronic pain – pain that’s experienced on a daily basis in excess of three to six months — and one in 10 will report that pain is interfering with their lives, which means it might be affecting their ability to work, says Ms Wales.

Also, research shows that the chemistry of stress can make the experience of pain from an injury worse, paving the way for the likelihood of chronic pain.

“We know that people stop going to work because of pain and are less effective at work,” she says.

Research shows that Australia loses five billion dollars every year in reduced work productivity due to chronic pain in workers — a big number given the ageing workforce and skills shortage

People aged between 35 and 55 years can have two or more chronic conditions. When they suffer an injury, the problem becomes complex.

“Managing that pain is really important and retaining those workers is critical because as a nation, we need those numbers in our work force.”

Ms Wales will be speaking at the Annual National Workers Compensation Conference on 23-26 February 2009 in Melbourne.

She will talk about how minor soft tissue injuries can lead to chronic pain and how clinicians and workers will benefit from an understanding of the physiology of chronic pain and how to deal with it.

She will also discuss the need to improve the level of control workers with chronic pain have over their lives.

“That means bringing them into the process and not excluding them from the process of planning in rehabilitation,” Ms Wales says.

“I’ll be touching on the fact that we can produce a circle around injured workers which makes them the leader, rather than the follower…and when we do that it really works, reducing a lot of the game playing that goes on in rehabilitation.”

Ms Wales says research shows the community can play a key role in workers getting back to a position of trusting after possibly years of feeling they haven’t had control because they haven’t trusted what has been going on in their lives in trying to manage pain.

The importance of community is the reason why Chronic Pain Australia exists.

“We’ve developed an organisation which is made up of volunteer consumers of pain management services, just ordinary people who have been through the experience and who have now become a model for other people, and it helps people trust the process of learning how to manage their pain,” she says.

Other speakers attending the conference include Martin Dolan, Chief Executive Officer for Comcare; Jarrod Moran, Workers Compensation Officer for Australian Council of Trade Unions; Dr Peter Tuchin, Senior Lecturer at Macquarie University; Craig Bosworth, Public & Industry Affairs Manager for Medibank Private; and Dr Angelica Vecchio-Sadus, HSE & Site Operations Manager at CSIRO Minerals.

www.nationalworkerscomp.com.au

To arrange a media pass, request more information or arrange speaker interviews please contact:

Nigel Dique
Informa-IIR 02 9080 4108; 0423 024 819; nigel.dique@informa.com.au

Comprehensive agenda for Mining the Territory

The Mining the Territory conference in Darwin, Australia on 14-15 October will provide an opportunity to debate the big challenges and opportunities in developing Northern Territory resources.

Northern Territory Resources Council CEO Scott Perkins says one of the big issues is the infrastructure necessary to support very remote operations, along with the interface between transport systems.

“During the conference you’ll hear discussion about the port, road-rail infrastructure and the interconnections.”

Mr Perkins says he’s pleased to see Dr Ian Scrimgeour, the Director of the NT Geological Survey head up the program.

“After more than 100 years of exploration, we have a fair idea of the true potential of NT mineral resources,” he says.

“But we are going to find out a lot more, with Dr Scrimgeour driving a program of geophysical surveys.”

Dr Scrimgeour’s address will be on ‘Unlocking the greenfields exploration potential of the Territory’.

“There’s enough in the program for everyone to get what they want out of it,” says Mr Perkins.

“It’s an opportunity for people to assess for themselves the very great opportunities that are available here, the great resources that back up those opportunities in the form of local companies and local people, and we hope they can see a way of investing in our great Territory.”

http://www.iir.com.au/territory/blog

Comprehensive agenda for Mining the Territory

The Mining the Territory conference in Darwin on 14-15 October in Darwin will provide an opportunity to debate the big challenges and opportunities in developing NT resources.

Northern Territory Resources Council CEO Scott Perkins says one of the big issues is the infrastructure necessary to support very remote operations, along with the interface between transport systems.

“During the conference you’ll hear discussion about the port, road-rail infrastructure and the interconnections,” he says.

Mr Perkins says he’s pleased to see Dr Ian Scrimgeour, the Director of the NT Geological Survey head up the program.

“After more than 100 years of exploration, we have a fair idea of the true potential of NT mineral resources,” he says.

“But we are going to find out a lot more, with Dr Scrimgeour driving a program of geophysical surveys.”

Dr Scrimgeour’s address will be on ‘Unlocking the greenfields exploration potential of the Territory’.

“There’s enough in the program for everyone to get what they want out of it,” says Mr Perkins.

“It’s an opportunity for people to assess for themselves the very great opportunities that are available here, the great resources that back up those opportunities in the form of local companies and local people, and we hope they can see a way of investing in our great Territory.”

Visit http://www.iir.com.au/territory.

Interview – Mike Doyle on occupational health and wellbeing

We had the opportunity to talk to Mike Doyle, Manager Culture & Performance, Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority, about the role of Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority and uncover their secret to success when asked about their health and wellbeing program that played a key part in winning the inaugural Best Employer in the Public Sector award.

He also shed some light on the main points he will touch on in his presentation to the Occupational Health & Wellbeing Conference 2008 on the 16th and 17th of September in Sydney.

Rail haulage regime aims to eliminate uncertainty

The Pilbara Rail Access Interdepartmental Committee (PRAIC) is now considering stakeholder submissions for the development of a state-based third party haulage regime for iron ore railways in the Pilbara.

Submissions were invited from stakeholders and other interested parties (aspiring iron ore producers, incumbents BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group, and industry representatives) as part of the consultation process, which was launched on 10 June.

With the closing date for submissions 25 July, the PRAIC is expected to make a report to the WA cabinet after September this year.

John Murphy, Assistant Director Structural Policy, with the WA Department of Treasury and Finance told the Mining the Pilbara Conference in Karratha in June that a Pilbara railways haulage regime was necessary to resolve current uncertainty over third party access.

He said the regime would be developed so it was capable of certification under Part IIIA of the Trade Practices Act 1974. This provides a benchmark that the regime will be effective, balancing the interests of infrastructure providers and access seekers.

“Pilbara railways are covered by a variety of State agreements, intended to facilitate access arrangements,” Mr Murphy said. “BHP Billiton’s and Rio Tinto’s current State agreements include provisions for haulage services, while Fortescue Metals Group’s current State agreement includes provisions for track access.”

Track access (below rail) means third parties provide their own rolling stock and operate to separate standards, and haulage (above rail) provides third parties with access to the existing operating haulage service provided by the infrastructure owner.

“The regime’s principles include the promotion of optimal and efficient use and investment in Pilbara rail infrastructure, the recovery of efficient costs by the provider, preservation of haulage provider safety and operational standards, maintenance of system flexibility, and simplicity and transparency,” Mr Murphy said.

Feedback was sought on a number of issues including whether a tonnage threshold should be implemented – how many million tonnes per annum should haulage services be limited to – capacity, haulage charges, the term of access arrangements and dispute resolution.

Implementation of the regime will require legislation, while the regime will also be submitted to the National Competition Council for certification.

The Pilbara region in 2006-07 produced 258 million tonnes of iron ore, generating sales of $15.75 billion and royalty receipts of $851 million.

Focus on expectations key to worker retention

Miners and other employers in the Pilbara are advised that in attracting talent they should make sure they position the role to appeal to people with different expectations.

Those who want to stay a few years for example and seek residential-community living have different expectations from the fly-in-fly out (FIFO) cohort, or from those intent on building a career.

“For residential, it’s important to promote the strong community and sporting benefits of regional towns in the northwest,” Ashley McKinnon, Director, Resources & Energy for Hudson told delegates at the Mining the Pilbara conference in June.

“These include the fishing, sailing, scuba diving and camping opportunities. At the same time companies need to manage the expectation gap around issues like house rental rates and day-care availability.

“The options for FIFO may include flights from a range of towns, shift rosters that cater for couples or are best practice in terms of providing time off.

“Building a picture of the scale of operations and projects in the northwest (particularly green fields projects) is attractive to candidates looking to build on their career.

“For them, look at career development options, rotation on projects, mentoring, work flexibility through roster design and flexible work cycles for day workers, and benefits on par with best practice in the mining industry.

“Many candidates also now have the ability to fly in from other environments such as south west Australia, and while this does not help build the residential community it does address the labour pool shortage.”

Mr McKinnon said that understanding what it is about companies and projects that attracts the right type of candidate would pay dividends in positioning the company to get the best talent.

However, he warned: “Make sure that what you promise will actually be fulfilled, otherwise you risk having them leave or being poached by other companies looking for similar talent.

“The most important issue is to develop and maintain a positive corporate culture that values teamwork, employee development, sustainable work practices and equality, particularly with younger workers.”

Mining was not a global market so talent pools for labour were global, particularly in engineering disciplines and some trades. Skilled professionals were increasingly being sought from countries like South Africa, South America, Canada and Central Europe.

In Australia there was a lot of movement between Queensland, South Australia, the Hunter Valley, the eastern goldfields and the Pilbara. More effort was being made to develop indigenous talent pools in cooperation with aboriginal corporations and the families of existing workers.

The workforce composition had changed in the Pilbara. A large number of older skilled workers were retiring and being replaced by younger workers with high expectations and able to access information easily, and skilled workers from different cultural backgrounds.

He predicted at least five years of labour shortages only partially addressed through 457 visa skilled workforce migration.

Debate on coal use emissions reduction

The energy industry will get its first big chance to debate and respond to the Federal Government’s Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme green paper at the Coal Tech 2008 conference in Brisbane on 29-30 September.

The green paper proposes a limited amount of direct assistance to existing coal-fired electricity generators, and points to the potential benefits from developing clean coal technology, particularly viable carbon capture and storage.

At Coal Tech 2008, advances in carbon capture and storage, coal gasification, coal-to-liquids, coal drying and other technologies will be given a thorough airing.

With overseas and local electricity demand growing unabated coal fired power generation continues to be the preferred energy source in most countries into the foreseeable future. And with Goldman Sachs predicting $149 a barrel year-end price target for crude oil, coal gasification and coal-to-liquids technologies are taking the spotlight among viable alternative fuels.

Professor Victor Rudolph from the University of Queensland is to provide an update on current CO2 storage projects in Australia, while other speakers will go into detail on individual projects.

Among other speakers are Gordon Couch, from the International Energy Agency Clean Coal Centre, UK, who will provide an international update on coal to liquids and implications for transport fuels, and Barry Ford, CEO of Hybrid Energy, who will review the FuturGas project involving coal to liquids gasification and integrated electricity generation.

www.iir.com.au/coaltech