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Karratha - 6714

Steelmaker and mining competitors unite on plan to fast track green iron production

BlueScope, Rio Tinto and BHP say Australia needs a commercially viable alternative to blast furnace steelmaking, but securing enough gas and green hydrogen will be a challenge.
The Bluescope steelworks at Port Kembla near Wollongong

With the fastest-growing rents in the country, buying homes proves an easier option for some in regional WA

New data reveals the astronomical prices people in country WA are paying just to keep a roof over their heads, as some residents say the cost of renting is now similar to having a mortgage.
Young couple sit on grey couch holding their baby girl.

'A horrid scam on the Indigenous community': Government to pay thousands of families after funeral insurance 'fiasco'

Thousands of Australians who collectively lost millions of dollars to failed funeral insurer Youpla could now get some of their money back, under a newly announced government scheme.
Updated
Cheryl Fernando and Donald Craigie

Energy giant Woodside backs away from $80 billion merger deal with Santos

The combined business would reportedly have had an LNG (liquefied natural gas) capacity of 16 million tonnes a year.
Updated
Three buildings in a city skyline

Mining companies, towns brace for second WA pilot strike in six months

Network Aviation pilots will stop work for 24 hours on Thursday impacting passengers across regional Western Australia who fly with the Qantas subsidiary.
FIFO workers disembarking from a plane.

Struggling nickel sector asks for urgent support, but analysts say 'folly' to give a taxpayer-funded lifeline

Nickel prices have plummeted in recent months due to a glut in the market, but some analysts say it's part of the "boom and bust" nature of the industry.
Two Caucasian hands holding a large rock, person wearing jeans and hello and grey mining shirt, dirt and grass behind.

Driver dies as car hits pole in northern WA, major crash officers to investigate

Police appeal for witnesses after the black sedan veered onto the median strip in the CBD in the early hours today.
Updated
A side-by-side of a black crashed car and wreckage on a regional road.

Mining equipment company to cover repatriation costs for Canadian FIFO worker who died in WA crash

The multinational Schlam Group employed Ambrose Walton before his death in the Pilbara last week and will pay to send the 33-year-old's body home to his family in Canada.
A man climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

After he was caught doing 205kph, a 26-year-old's luxury Lexus is the new face of a road safety campaign

A forfeited Lexus is turned into a roving anti-speeding advertisement to encourage drivers to slow down, as WA's South West region records the worst regional road toll in the state.
The numberplate on a black car, which says '4fited'

As another school year begins, what does the future hold for the class of 2023?

As another school year begins, the ABC speaks to 10 recent high school graduates from all over country Australia about their hopes, dreams and fears for the future. 
A profile shot of four young people.

Missing FIFO worker's vehicle was meant to have tracker installed next week

The employer of a fly-in fly-out worker found two days after crashing his work vehicle in remote Western Australia says the utility was due to have a tracking device installed next week.
A man climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Major crash unit investigating after missing FIFO worker is found dead in regional WA

WA police confirm 33-year-old fly-in-fly-out worker Ambrose Walton, missing in the Pilbara region since Tuesday, has been found dead after his vehicle crashed near an unsealed access road.
Updated
Photos of a Toyota Hilux and a man supplied by WA Police

Plummeting critical mineral prices are causing near panic. What's behind it and what comes next?

Plummeting critical mineral prices have pushed WA's major industry players to mothball their mines, workers to lose jobs and the government to all but panic. What's the fallout and what comes next?
Updated
Ardea Goongarrie Hub rock

With mines closing and FIFO jobs on the line, WA's government throws a lifeline to nickel miners

Nickel miners could pay less to mine in WA, as the government holds crisis talks with the resources industry as mines shut and hundreds of jobs are lost.
Updated
A person holds a handfull of ground nickel

Land and air search underway for Canadian FIFO worker missing in remote Pilbara

Ambrose Walton, described as having a strong Canadian accent, was last seen near Tom Price on Tuesday and never turned up to meet a friend in Karratha.
Updated
Photos of a Toyota Hilux and a man supplied by WA Police

Parts of WA could hit 50 degrees over the weekend as extreme heatwave looms

Residents in parts of the Pilbara, Midwest and Goldfields have been warned to brace for extreme heatwave conditions from Friday and into the weekend.
Updated
Pictured is Mt Augustus which is the world's largest monolith, two times larger than Uluru.

Residents count high cost of living as prices for goods and services soar in WA towns

Living in regional Western Australia remains a costly enterprise, with prices consistently higher than Perth for basics including groceries and fuel.
Lady's hand holding cash over the till

Potential threat to Cocos Keeling Islands as Tropical Cyclone Anggrek intensifies

A blue alert has been issued for the remote islands, with the newly declared cyclone expected to intensify over the course of the day.
Updated
An island with palm trees surrounded by turquoise water.

Former police boss backs call for more liquor restrictions in regional WA, saying 'this is a statewide problem'

Karl O'Callaghan is urging the state's director of liquor licensing to consider a police proposal to restrict the sale of alcohol in more regional areas, warning "children's lives at stake".
Headshot of a man with a bush background.

Pilbara heat like a secret weapon, shaping Josh into an up-and-coming Australian cricketer

From playing games in the scorching summers of WA's Pilbara to representing Australia, Josh Vernon's cricket career is only just beginning.
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A cricketer wearing yellow and black runs in to bowl next to a umpire wearing a blue jacket

Fine for cattle deaths 'makes a mockery' of WA animal welfare laws, businessman says

Mugarinya Community Association's $50,000 fine for animal welfare breaches "does not reflect the community standards and expectations put on the agricultural industry", claims feedlot operator Paul Brown.
Updated
Brahman cattle in the Kimberley

Volunteer firefighter seeks better PTSD support so sufferers do not need to 'jump through hoops'

A regional WA firefighter opens up about dealing with trauma amid a statewide call for the same presumptive post-traumatic stress disorder coverage given to paid emergency crews.
Updated
Anonymous shot of a firefighter holding his helmet

Having worked in fossil fuels for three decades, Ray concedes he's not your typical EV enthusiast

A former coal, oil and gas worker, Ray Middleton believes isolation shouldn't stop people from switching to electric vehicles.
White man standing next to white electric car with orange dirt

What does a pristine tropical island do with decades worth of dumped cars?

How does a pristine tropical island manage decades of rubbish? For one of Australia's most remote territories, it can be an expensive ordeal.
Rusting cars with smashed windscreens among tropical palms.

Station operators fined $50k over the death of 1,000 cattle suffering from neglect

Operators of a station in WA's Pilbara will be forced to pay a $50,000 fine over the death of 1,000 cattle suffering from neglect. 
Updated
cows in pilbara paddock