Latest news with #Cloncurry
The Australian
8 hours ago
- Business
- The Australian
Explorers Podcast: True North Copper
Stockhead's 'Garimpeiro' columnist Barry FitzGerald is back in the studio for another instalment of The Explorers Podcast. In this edition, Barry looks to North West Queensland and chats with True North Copper (ASX:TNC) managing director Bevan Jones after making a pivot to building up a bigger red metal resource base in the famed mineral province. Investors are very keen on copper, and Barry thinks the Mt Isa/Cloncurry region might be the best place for it, so Barry and Bevan dig into the region, its history, a high-profile recent discovery, the region's processing options, and TNC's forward plan to build up scale before the turn to production. This podcast was developed in collaboration with True North Copper, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing. The interviews and discussions in this podcast are opinions only and not financial or investment advice. Listeners should obtain independent advice based on their own circumstances before making any financial decisions.
The Australian
05-08-2025
- Business
- The Australian
Long Shortz: True North Copper
Tylah Tully chats with True North Copper (ASX:TNC) managing director Bevan Jones about a highly active quarter focused on exploration across its Cloncurry and Mt Oxide copper projects in Queensland. Drilling at the Great Australia Mine in Cloncurry delivered new zones of mineralisation outside established resources as True North looks towards new mining, while early drilling at the Mt Oxide project delivered a discovery of high-grade copper, cobalt and silver as exploration continues across the portfolio and into the next quarter. Watch the video to learn more. This video was developed in collaboration with True North Copper, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing. This video does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.
ABC News
17-07-2025
- ABC News
Qantas travellers' bush stranding highlights Australia's need for aviation consumer law
Sancia Walker almost made it home from her holiday last week. But when her Qantas flight was grounded in Cloncurry due to a mechanical issue, she said she was left to find her own way home. "They told us: 'No, you actually need to find your own accommodation for the night,'" Ms Walker said. Ms Walker had to book a cabin overnight, instead of completing her trip from Townsville to Mount Isa. She said it was a scramble for the roughly 30 passengers to find accommodation in the town of 3,000 people last Wednesday. Ms Walker said ground staff promised Qantas would text or email each passenger overnight to let them know if a replacement plane or a bus would be provided the next day. The following morning, Ms Walker said she had not heard from the airline, so she organised for a colleague in Mount Isa to make the three-hour round trip via car to pick her up. She said Qantas contacted her three days after the flight, after she lodged a complaint, offering to reimburse her out-of-pocket costs for the accommodation and meals. Ms Walker said the airline would not refund the cost of the flight but offered 5,000 frequent flyer points instead. A return flight from Mount Isa to Townsville costs a minimum of 16,000 points. Qantas said the airline had apologised to customers affected by the delay and would be reviewing the situation. In a statement, they said a replacement aircraft was sent to Cloncurry the following day to help get customers on their way. "We'll also reimburse them for related expenses," they said. Ms Walker said she did not receive a text or email about a replacement flight, but saw the updated flight on her Qantas app when she opened it during her lift home. Aviation expert Ian Douglas said the experience highlighted Australia's lack of aviation-specific consumer laws. "If this had happened in Europe, Qantas would have been obliged by law to get the passengers where they were travelling, to accommodate them, feed them, care for them until that was done, and to have compensated them for the delay," he said. Dr Douglas, who worked for Qantas for 25 years and lectures at the University of NSW, said general Australian consumer law was not well-suited to disrupted flights. Each airline has its own policy regarding flight disruptions, but has limited legal obligations to get customers to their intended destination or refund fares. Dr Douglas said operating airlines with Australia's relatively small population and large distances was difficult, but it was not a unique issue — pointing to countries like Finland and Canada that have similar demographics and geography. "It's therefore more difficult to connect and service regularly, but that's not an excuse for leaving people stranded without resources," he said. Dr Douglas said the federal government needed to step in for any meaningful change to happen. "If there was a willingness to run the business differently, they could have done that already," he said. He pointed to a 2024 Aviation White paper, where the Australian government announced an ombudsperson to set out national guidelines for the fair and appropriate treatment of customers by airlines and airports. An interim ombudsperson has started drafting some rules, but so far has yet to see significant progress. "It's taken two years to implement something fairly mediocre," Dr Douglas said. "They've really been kicking the can down the road as far as not implementing the sorts of things that are considered basic rights in Europe and have been implemented in Canada and the US."
ABC News
15-07-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Burnt-out doctor's resignation forces change in one-GP town of Cloncurry
The resignation of the last GP in an outback town has forced Queensland health authorities to make changes to attract a replacement. Cameron Hoare became the only GP in Cloncurry, 120 kilometres east of Mount Isa, after purchasing the town's private practice for $2 in 2022. But he left this year, burnt out and defeated, for the sake of his own health. Dr Hoare's role was to run the GP practice for the town of 3,000 and be Cloncurry Hospital's medical superintendent. As part of a hospital service agreement with Queensland Health, the two roles were part-time. The rural generalist said the job-share model pushed him to the brink of mental collapse. "I was holding on by a string," Dr Hoare said, when he announced his resignation in March. Since Dr Hoare's resignation, the roles have been split into two separate full-time positions. Townsville-based outreach doctor Michael Clements purchased the private practice in June and is passionate about providing continuity of care to the people Cloncurry. He said a condition of the sale was that Queensland Health must abandon its job-share model, and separate the hospital and GP practice responsibilities. "He [Dr Hoare] was facing the normal pressures of running a small business, plus the Queensland Health pressures of providing 24/7 care to a hospital for a community that needed it," Dr Clements said. Queensland Health has since hired a second doctor, Jillian McClimon, in Cloncurry as the regional director of medical services. She began the role this week. Dr Clements said before he resigned, Dr Hoare advocated for separating the hospital and private practice roles, but his pleas went unanswered. "Sadly, it took Cameron walking away and the potential collapse of the service entirely to actually get the negotiating table working again." Dr Hoare has now moved from Cloncurry and is between roles in Far North Queensland's Atherton Tablelands. "When I made the decision [to quit] and started moving forward, there was like a weight lifted off my shoulders, and my physical and mental health just improved dramatically," he said. Dr Hoare said rural health worker advocacy groups, including the Rural College of General Practitioners (RCGP), were aware of the pressure facing small-town medical professionals and were doing what they could, but more action was required from governments to stop other doctors falling through the cracks. "I don't think these groups [like the RCGP] need the learnings, I think it's who these groups report to and lobby to and advocate to," he said. North West Hospital and Health Service (NWHHS) chief executive Sean Birgan rejected claims Dr Hoare's concerns went unnoticed. "We acknowledge the efforts that Dr Hoare's put in and also the comments that he's made about the importance that we need to have in supporting the medical workforce," Mr Birgan said. "We believe this model that we've put in place will do that." Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Tim Nicolls said the new NWHHS's medical model in Cloncurry was designed to improve long-term workforce sustainability.
ABC News
03-07-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Austral Resources Australia acquires Rocklands Copper Mine near Cloncurry
An outback Queensland copper mine with a tumultuous and controversial history has been acquired for the third time in seven years. Austral Resources Australia has executed a binding agreement to acquire Rocklands Copper Mine near Cloncurry, which has sat in care and maintenance since November. While the acquisition could be a boost for the community, residents are cautious given a decade of failures involving the mine. Rocklands' reputation has been sullied by a trail of unpaid invoices and job losses, which led to the closure of local businesses. The community is concerned the mine has caused the town more pain than gain in its nine-year history. Cloncurry Shire Mayor Greg Campbell said while any mining activity was positive for the community, past owners might have tainted any trust in Rocklands. Austral non-executive director Dan Jauncey said the company's priority was to rebuild a relationship with residents. "We're in this for the long haul," he said. "We can't do this without the people, without the businesses supporting us as we want to support them." Mr Jauncey said Austral would revisit Rocklands' previous failures and assess what could be done differently. "[Rocklands] has been undercapitalised, under-resourced," he said. "We're very focused on this consolidation piece and ensuring, before we hit go on anything, that we've got all our i's dotted and t's crossed." Chinese-backed miner CuDeco first opened Rocklands in 2016. It closed in 2018 and fell into receivership the following year, leaving $60 million in unpaid wages and debts. Cr Campbell said the unpaid bills put pressure on residents, causing an exodus from the town. After liquidation in 2020, Copper Resources Australia purchased the mine in 2021, promising a brighter future. Within three years it was again in administration, joining two other copper projects shuttered in 2024. The mothballing of the mine this time around affected more than 600 workers, again creating bitterness among Cloncurry residents. Now, seven months on, Austral said it wanted this new deal settled by the end of August. It has operated the Lady Annie copper mine north of Mount Isa for the past six years. Once finalised, the company will also have to face the potential closure of Mount Isa's copper smelter — one of just two in the country — as Swiss owners Glencore seek government funds to keep it running. The loss of the smelter could mean that copper production would move overseas. Mr Jauncey said Austral was aware of the situation and prepared to work through it. "All we can focus on is what we can control … but I know that we can be self-sufficient," he said. Cr Campbell said to keep Cloncurry afloat, mining companies needed to do the right thing by the community. "As a mining shire, we're happy to do our bit and promote the area," he said. "But we do have a strong expectation on businesses, especially mining companies, to come and invest in our community and do it transparently … ultimately to pay the bills." He said Austral had work to do to ensure Cloncurry was not held ransom by Rocklands a third time. "If they want to come and operate in our shire, they're more than welcome," he said. "But we've got a really strong desire to keep our people ultimately employed and then paid once they do their work."
