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Jenny Wiggins

Today

Aurizon has been trialling importing cars into Darwin and putting them on trains to South Australia

Aurizon investors impatient for Top End contracts

Aurizon is in “regular” talks with potential customers for its ambitious land bridge scheme, but scepticism abounds over whether it can pull the bold plan off.

September

Brisbane’s Clem Jones tunnel goes under the city centre

PFAS foam leaks on Transurban’s Brisbane toll road rankle council

Transurban’s maintenance practices are being reviewed by Brisbane’s city council after fire-fighting foam spilled from a tank into a pump station in the company’s Clem Jones Tunnel.

Former Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin testified at the Senate inquiry into the telco’s outage

Optus communications ‘manifestly inadequate’ in 2023 phone outage

Senators want new rules to force telco groups to keep the public updated when phone and internet connections fail.

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Qube employees in Melbourne temporarily refused to handle goods carried on the Turandot as part of strike action.

Qube sues own employees for damages for blocking ship services

A wage dispute between logistics group Qube and wharfies in Melbourne has escalated after the company sued more than 20 union members.

Optus sold its tower network to a business majority-owned by AustralianSuper in 2021.

AusSuper’s mobile towers empire slumps deep into the red

The country’s largest superannuation investor was already at odds with its partner, Singtel-owned Optus, over a delay in rolling out network infrastructure.

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Telco companies don’t want to pay fees to add antennas to existing mobile phone towers.

Telco groups protest state ‘profiteering’ from antennas

Telecommunications companies are pushing NSW to scrap fees for adding antennas and other equipment to mobile towers on Crown land.

Pacific National has taken a hefty loss as CEO Paul Scurrah prepares to step down at the end of 2024.

Pacific National takes hefty write-down on NSW coal business

The rail freight group has written off $424 million and blamed lower container freight volumes, bad weather and smaller harvests for deepening the annual loss of its parent.

Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson.

Airlines and Melbourne Airport headed for runway funding feud

Vanessa Hudson says Melbourne Airport needs to wait until “the demand is there” before building a third runway and charging airlines and their passengers to pay for it.

Telstra Health is run by Elizabeth Koff

Telstra Health loses 300 jobs but stays on the block

The telco group is holding off from offloading Telstra Health as chief executive Vicki Brady restructures swathes of the company to boost profits.

Sydneysiders think the tolls they are charged to drive around the city are too high

Transurban’s plan on the table in Sydney toll fare overhaul

Investors are optimistic that the toll road group’s preferred option will be a serious bargaining chip as NSW prepares to overhaul Sydney’s motorway fares.

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Atlas Arteria’s attempts to increase toll fares on the Dulles Greenway by as much as 40pc have been knocked back.

End of the road for Dulles Greenway’s 40pc toll increase

Atlas Arteria’s aspirations to push up tolls on its US road have been dashed after a regulator ruled out the hefty increase.

Communications tower, Australia

TPG Telecom, Optus network-sharing deal gets ACCC approval

TPG Telecom will market its mobile phone services to more Australians after the competition regulator said it could share networks with Optus in regional areas.

Vocus Group CEO Ellie Sweeney will run the National Broadband Network from December.

NBN Co names Vocus’ Ellie Sweeney as next CEO

The Vocus Group boss will step into Stephen Rue’s shoes as he prepares to take the reins at Optus.

August

Downer EDI boss Peter Tompkins

Downer EDI back in the black as cost-cutting pays off

The contractor’s shares soared on Friday as it swung back into profit and proved it could increase earnings margins.

TPG Telecom chief executive Inaki Berroeta.

TPG Telecom cuts 120 jobs as interim profits slide

The telco group, which is carrying more than $4 billion in debt, says it needs to keep reducing its expenses.

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The French government wants to tax motorways like France’s Autoroutes Paris-Rhin-Rhône.

New French fossil fuel tax clips Atlas Arteria’s profit

The motorway group’s interim profit slid 16 per cent despite making more money from tolls, as the introduction of the levy hits the bottom line.

Chris Ashton, the chief executive of Worley, says some energy projects are being delayed or cancelled, impacting work prospects.

Worley profits surge but pipeline softens as energy projects cancelled

Customers are being more “pragmatic” on how they reduce carbon emissions and putting pure sustainability projects on hold, says chief executive Chris Ashton.

Aussie Broadband co-founder and managing director Phillip Britt

Aussie Broadband pays first dividend, cuts jobs

Aussie Broadband declared its first-ever dividend after it connected more customers to the internet, boosting annual net profit by 21 per cent.

Qube’s Patrick stevedoring business handles containers from around the world

Qube’s Moorebank stake on the block

The logistics group said it could sell its stake in its new Moorebank interstate rail terminal after strikes at stevedore DP World helped boost annual net profit.

Superloop boss Paul Tyler says cash-strapped consumers are trading down to cheaper internet broadband plans

Superloop is winning the race for value, CEO claims

Aggressive competition in the broadband market is benefiting the internet provider as people trade down to cheaper plans.

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Original URL: https://www.afr.com/by/jenny-wiggins-j7gf5