$4.5 billion for regional roads

DGL Group Limited a specialist chemicals business that manufactures, transports, stores and processes chemicals and hazardous waste announced the acquisition of Profill Industries Pty Ltd for $7.65 million.

Profill is a chemical manufacturer based in Wangara, WA and the company provides chemical manufacturing, blending and packing services to customers across Australia and has been operating profitably for over 10 years.

Included in the acquisition are the leases of multiple warehouse and manufacturing facilities in WA and the appropriate licences and planning approvals for these operations. The business and assets will be fully integrated into the broader DGL Group, and will operate as a subsidiary of DGL’s chemical manufacturing business.

Founder and CEO of DGL, Simon Henry, said, “The Profill acquisition broadens our service offering and footprint in WA where we have been focused on growing our business and customer base.

“The acquisition brings a number of new customers that we aim to service across Australia’s east coast delivering national solutions. We also see a significant opportunity to cross-sell and engage these customers across all three of our divisions for manufacturing, warehousing and environmental recoveries.

The WA Government is delivering $4.5 billion for major road projects and programs throughout regional Western Australia as part of the 2021 22 State Budget.

Major projects funded and under construction include: • $852 million for the Bunbury Outer

Ring Road; • $175 million for the Albany Ring Road; • $98 million for upgrades to Great

Northern Highway at Ord River in the

Kimberley; • $36 million for Port Hedland Airport deviation; • $52 million for Coolgardie Esperance

Highway at Emu Rocks.

The 2021-22 State Budget also includes funding for projects currently in procurement or planning, including: • $120 million to upgrade and seal 100 kilometres of Marble Bar Road; • $380 million to construct and seal

Manuwarra Red Dog Highway Stage 4; • $250 million for upgrades to Great

Eastern Highway at Coates Gully, between Walgoolan to Southern Cross, and between Ghooli to Benari; • $55 million to upgrade Indian Ocean

Drive between Jurien Bay and Brand

Highway.

The jointly funded Regional Road Safety Program continues and will see $217 million spent during 2021-22 to seal shoulders and install audible edge lining over 3,300 kilometres of roads.

A further $194 million has been allocated to continue this program in 2022-23 and 2023-24. This is in addition to the $258 million invested to upgrade almost 4,300 kilometres of roads over the past year. $145 million has also been allocated to the Safer Roads and Bridges Program in regional WA, with an additional $193 million invested in the Resealing Program in regional WA.

Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said, "More and more people are choosing to hit the road and take holidays in regional WA, so it's important we make sure our regional roads are safe. "The 2021-22 State Budget highlights our focus on building a long-term and sustainable program to safeguard WA's economy and deliver the necessary upgrades to improve road safety across the regions. "We have a number of major projects under construction across regional WA - from the Kimberley in the north, to Albany in the south - to support local jobs and improve safety. "We are also continuing to deliver our Regional Road Safety Program which will see over 7,000 kilometres of regional roads ungraded by mid-2022.

For more information, visit www. ourstatebudget.wa.gov.au

Rio Tinto and Caterpillar have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Caterpillar’s development of zeroemissions autonomous haul trucks for use at one of Rio Tinto’s WA mining operations.

The collaboration will see Rio Tinto work with Caterpillar to advance the development of the manufacturer’s future 220-tonne 793 zero-emissions autonomous haul truck including the validation of Caterpillar’s emerging zero-emissions technology.

Rio Tinto and Caterpillar will progress a series of development milestones to include a 793 prototype pilot program, testing and pre-production trials.

It is anticipated that the world’s first operational deployment of approximately 35 new Caterpillar 793 zero-emissions autonomous haul trucks will be at GudaiDarri once development is complete. Gudai-Darri is Rio Tinto’s most technically advanced iron ore mine, in the Pilbara, Western Australia

Caterpillar Group President Denise Johnson said, “The integration of autonomy with a zero-emissions fleet demonstrates Rio Tinto’s commitment to reach net zero emissions.