Development and activity in the Pilbara certainly doesn’t look like slowing down any time soon.
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August 2024 was a big month for RDA Pilbara, with a visit from the WA Cabinet and the staging of the Developing Northern Australia Conference in Karratha.
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September proved just as busy, albeit in different ways. Milestones were definitely on the agenda, with a sundowner to mark Woodside’s 70-year anniversary, the official opening of the Roebourne Remote Health and Social Care Training Hub and the commencement of operations at BCI Minerals’ Mardie Salt and Potash Project.
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The salt project, in particular, was the focus of widespread attention, as Premier Roger Cook, Federal Minister for Resources Madeleine King and State Minister for Mines and Petroleum David Michael made the trip to the Pilbara for the start-up of Australia’s first new major salt operation in more than 20 years.
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The Mardie project showcases a lot of what is so exciting about the Pilbara’s future: it will create hundreds of jobs (750 during construction and 140 full-time roles when fully operational), produce millions of tonnes of high-quality and in-demand salt each year for export to markets around the world and source 99 per cent of the energy for production from renewables.
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Watching Mardie take shape is another reminder of the global relevance of Pilbara industries, both current and emerging. To realise our region’s full potential, we must always be open to fresh opportunities and prepared to innovate in the way we tackle challenges.
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One of the ways RDA Pilbara is doing this is through the Pilbara’s Designated Area Migration Agreement, which provides local businesses with alternative pathways to address critical workforce shortages and fill essential roles. Since it launched in Karratha and Port Hedland in early 2022, the DAMA has expanded to include the Shire of East Pilbara, grown to 135 occupations and endorsed more than 1000 people to work in the Pilbara.
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The impact for local industries and communities has been very positive and we want this to continue to grow. That’s why RDA Pilbara was very pleased to partner in September with the Australian Department of Home Affairs, WA's Department of Training and Workforce Development and AusIndustry for a skilled visa roadshow that visited Newman, Port Hedland, Karratha and Onslow.
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Open dialogue about skilled migrations helps stakeholders like RDA Pilbara to understand pinch points in the region’s workforces and raises awareness among businesses of the recruitment options that are available to them.
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October promises to be another highly busy month for RDA Pilbara, with numerous important events outside the region: WA Local Government Week (currently underway), the National Economic Development Conference in Melbourne, SEGRA’s National Regional and Economic Development Summit and the RDA National Forum (both in Busselton), and the Western Australia Low Carbon Fuels Summit in Perth.
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Locally, we have a meeting of the Karratha and West Pilbara Regional Coordinating Committee, the KDCCI Business Excellence Awards and, of course, the RDA Pilbara AGM on October 14.
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October has already had its first highlight for RDA Pilbara, through the launch of Dr Tracy Westerman’s memoir Jilya in Karratha.
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Tracy’s story is a truly inspirational one, going from humble beginnings in the Pilbara to become the first Aboriginal person in Australia to complete a PhD in Clinical Psychology, and then emerging as one of the country’s foremost psychologists.
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It’s very clear that more people from the Pilbara’s Aboriginal communities should have the opportunity to follow in Tracy’s footsteps and access training and skills development that will allow them to pursue their passions. Barriers that are preventing them from doing so need to be identified and actively addressed.
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RDA Pilbara sees this as an integral part of our development charter and one on which we are very much committed to supporting meaningful change.
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