Latest news with #TomKoutsantonis
Time of India
12 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
South Australian government threatens to intervene in oil giant Santos $30 billion Abu Dhabi takeover bid
UAE investors, led by XRG, offered nearly $30 billion to acquire Australian oil and gas producer Santos at $8.99 per share, a 28% premium. Following the deal announcement, the South Australian government threatened to intervene if the takeover bid for the state's largest company is "not in the interests of South Australians." Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Santos Assets United Arab Emirates investors have made a cash bid of almost $30 billion to take over Australian oil and gas producer Santos. The consortium of investors, led by XRG, an arm of the government-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, has offered $8.99 cash per share for the acquisition of Santos. According to 9News, it is a 28 percent premium on shareholders' stocks compared to the $6.96 closing price on the deal announcement, the South Australian government threatened to intervene if the takeover bid for the state's largest company is "not in the interests of South Australians," according to ABC News. Santos told the stock exchange on Monday that it had received a takeover offer from the about the takeover bid, Energy and Mining Minister Tom Koutsantonis said that if the deal is not in the interests of South Australians, the South Australian government will act accordingly. He also said that having Santos headquartered in Adelaide was of "strategic and vital importance to the state." "We're going to fight to keep it here," he added. Koutsantonis further stated that the takeover was "not a foregone conclusion." He said the state government recently passed legislation that "requires our consent for change of licence ownership in the resources sector.""We've got legislation that puts us at the table," he said. "That means we're going to use that legislation, and if the deal is not in the interests of South Australians, the South Australian government will say so and act accordingly." If this deal is not in the interests of Australia, then the Commonwealth government will look at it and have a XRG, the consortium also includes Abu Dhabi Development Holding Company and US private equity group Carlyle. The investors issued the non-binding indicative proposal on Friday. The offer values the oil and gas company at about $28.8 board of South Australia's largest company has given the indication that it intends to unanimously recommend shareholders to vote in favour of the potential transaction in the absence of a better offer and subject to arriving at a final agreement, ABC News reported. The agreement is also subject to approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, and the National Offshore Petroleum Titles Administrators, as well as other authorities in Papua New Guinea and the was founded in 1954 as South Australia and Northern Territory Oil Search. It is a top-20 company on the ASX. The company has oil and gas assets in the Cooper Basin in far northeastern South Australia, Gladstone in Queensland, and across Western Australia and Papua New has said that it has intentions to keep Santos's headquarters in Adelaide and its "brand and operational footprint in Australia and key international operational hubs." The Abu Dhabi company also said it intended to "work closely with the existing management team to accelerate growth and support local employment and the communities where Santos operates."
News.com.au
25-04-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
Charles Sturt Council pushes for law review to crack down on caravan and boat street parking
A South Australian council has turned to the state government to help crack down on caravans and boats taking up street parking along residential roads. Charles Sturt Council in Adelaide announced last week it would write to Infrastructure and Transport Minister Tom Koutsantonis to review state laws that would enable councils to tighten up parking restrictions on larger vehicles. Current regulations read that vehicles longer than 7.5m or weighing more than 4.5 tonnes cannot be parked on roads in built-up areas for more than an hour, unless actively involved in pickup or delivery. More than 100 expiations - a type of fine - have been handed out to residents in the local government area for breaking this rule in the past year alone. Councils across SA are limited in their response due to current laws, with further investigations often finding no breach of parking regulations. Charles Sturt Council engaged community general manager Kristie Johnson told the Advertiser they would ask for councils to be empowered to enforce and manage long-term parking, including the storage of vehicles such as caravans and trailers on public roads. The motion was put forward by councillor Peter Ppiros, who said he had received ongoing complaints about long�term parking of vehicles, including trailers, boats, and caravans, on council�managed streets within his ward. The issue is far from unique to the Adelaide community, with Australians long having taken matters into their own hands in efforts to stake a claim to precious street parking. One street in St Kilda in Melbourne's inner-west was labelled a 'caravan park' after trailers, boats, and caravans began to take over the streets. The City of Port Phillip was unable to do much about it, as they were confined by time, length, and weight restrictions that did not allow the vehicles to be removed. 'A large proportion of vehicles impacting the local community are parked legally with no mechanism in place to address this issue,' now-Mayor Louise Crawford wrote at the time.
Perth Now
25-04-2025
- Automotive
- Perth Now
Caravan, boat owners in council's crosshairs
A South Australian council has turned to the state government to help crack down on caravans and boats taking up street parking along residential roads. Charles Sturt Council in Adelaide announced last week it would write to Infrastructure and Transport Minister Tom Koutsantonis to review state laws that would enable councils to tighten up parking restrictions on larger vehicles. Current regulations read that vehicles longer than 7.5m or weighing more than 4.5 tonnes cannot be parked on roads in built-up areas for more than an hour, unless actively involved in pickup or delivery. More than 100 expiations - a type of fine - have been handed out to residents in the local government area for breaking this rule in the past year alone. Councils across SA are limited in their response due to current laws, with further investigations often finding no breach of parking regulations. Councils are limited in their response to large vehicles, such as caravans and boats, taking up street parking due to current laws. Reddit/ Facebook Credit: Supplied Charles Sturt Council in Adelaide announced it will crack down on caravans and boats taking up precious on-street parking. Reddit/ Facebook Credit: Supplied Charles Sturt Council engaged community general manager Kristie Johnson told the Advertiser they would ask for councils to be empowered to enforce and manage long-term parking, including the storage of vehicles such as caravans and trailers on public roads. The motion was put forward by councillor Peter Ppiros, who said he had received ongoing complaints about long‐term parking of vehicles, including trailers, boats, and caravans, on council‐managed streets within his ward. The issue is far from unique to the Adelaide community, with Australians long having taken matters into their own hands in efforts to stake a claim to precious street parking. One street in St Kilda in Melbourne's inner-west was labelled a 'caravan park' after trailers, boats, and caravans began to take over the streets. The City of Port Phillip was unable to do much about it, as they were confined by time, length, and weight restrictions that did not allow the vehicles to be removed. 'A large proportion of vehicles impacting the local community are parked legally with no mechanism in place to address this issue,' now-Mayor Louise Crawford wrote at the time. Charles Sturt Council and Mr Ppiros have been contacted for comment.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Caravan and boat owners targeted by Aussie council in fresh crackdown
Authorities across the country continue to grapple with the tension caused by caravans and boats taking up precious on-street parking along residential roads. One council is even asking for state laws to change to crack down on the issue. Charles Sturt Council in Adelaide announced last week it intends to reach out to South Australia's Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Tom Koutsantonis to review state laws that would enable councils to introduce stricter parking restrictions on larger vehicles. At the moment, councils across the state are limited in their response due to current laws. "Council has proposed to write to the Transport Minister to seek a review of the relevant legislation to empower councils to enforce and manage long-term parking and the storage of vehicles such as caravans and trailers on public roads where no other parking restrictions apply," the council's General Manager Engaged Community Kristie Johnson told Yahoo News. There are a few exceptions but under current Australian Road Rules, vehicles heavier than 4.5 tonnes or longer than 7.5 metres can't be parked in built-up areas for more than one hour. However, Kristie told The Advertiser the council has issued 111 expiations, a type of fine, in the last year due to residents in the local government area (LGA) breaking this rule. The council hope to reduce these breaches by introducing tougher restrictions and freeing up parking options. There has been an uptick in the number of caravans on Aussie roads and this is only compounding the issue, according to Charles Mountain, Manager of Safety and Infrastructure at the RAA. "It's probably becoming a bigger problem for a combination of reasons. More and more people own caravans and boats than ever before... we've got a situation now where modern homes often only have six or eight metres between property boundary and the garage means there is limited space," Charles told ABC Adelaide. "People are defaulting to parking their recreational vehicle on the street and of course that causes a lot of problems as the vehicles by very nature are large... the challenge for councils is to manage that because it obviously creates a lot of friction and tension with the resident who feels miffed if they can't park their vehicle in front of the property they paid rates for," he said. On-street parking of boats, trailers and caravans has long been a contentious issue for residents as many find it difficult enough to claim a park for their car in built-up areas, never mind have ample space to accomodate larger vehicles too. The tension has become so heightened in the past that residents living in Sydney's Northern City Council even resorted to vandalism by spray painting 'f**k it off' on a boat to deter the owner from parking in their street. 🌳 Council backflips on 'blunderous' tree decision that shocked city shoppers 👀 Little-known parking tactic used by councils to catch out drivers 😲 Council erupts over 'reverse graffiti' act on footpath Councils have approached the issue in different ways, with Randwick City Council taking a firm stance by completely blocking parking along a five-kilometre nature strip after it grew popular with large vehicle parking. In comparison, North Sydney council previously told Yahoo News it was aware of the "ongoing issue" of boats being parked in streets but simply explained the vehicles were "legally permitted" to be there. Yahoo News understands there are no specifics on the restrictions Charles Strut Council will propose at this stage. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Video shows major change on Aussie road as millions monitored by new AI cameras
New footage has revealed the impressive impact of AI-powered road cameras in the country's south, with authorities boasting the "smart" technology is already making roads safer by adjusting traffic lights in real time to keep cars flowing. The South Australian government announced over the weekend a fresh batch of AI cameras will soon be rolled out in known congestion hotspots, in a bid to prevent long queues and reduce rear-end collisions by "adjusting traffic signals in real time". This, the government says, creates safe gaps for cars to exit without vehicles being backed up, saving drivers "time and stress". Footage of AI cameras previously rolled out in the state last year shows how they're able to detect when traffic is becoming congested, triggering green lights to keep traffic moving. One camera will go on the highway at the northern suburb of Penfield, and another will be placed at the major bus station, Paradise Interchange, in the northeast suburbs. Another two will go on the highway at the far-southern suburb of Old Noarlunga. The SA government believes every 5,000 motorists stuck in traffic for 20 minutes costs the state economy $33,000. The new trial of four new cameras will cost $350,000. AI-enabled cameras are increasingly being adopted across Australia, with different states leveraging the technology in unique ways to improve road safety, infrastructure management, and environmental protection. Mobile cameras pioneered to target new drivers in 'clear message' Costly road act flagged as 11,400 drivers caught by new cameras Warning ahead of major change coming to Australian roads In NSW, councils are using AI-integrated dashcams to automatically detect road defects such as potholes, damaged signage and worn line markings. This streamlines repair work and allows councils to respond to hazards more efficiently. Meanwhile, in Sydney's southwest, AI cameras are being trialled to detect koalas near roads, in hopes of alerting drivers in real time to prevent wildlife collisions. Transport for NSW has also rolled out world-first technology, installing a number of machine learning traffic counting and classifying cameras to analyse freight vehicles to help in assisting supply chain decisions that reduce congestion and lead to enhanced productivity. In Victoria, AI is used in mobile phones and seatbelt detection cameras. These systems can scan thousands of vehicles per hour and automatically identify offences, freeing up resources and increasing detection rates. Queensland has also trialled AI in traffic monitoring and predictive maintenance systems. AI sensors in Brisbane have been used to analyse traffic patterns and help city planners make data-driven decisions for future upgrades. South Australian Transport Minister Tom Koutsantonis said the new trial will positively impact motorists across the state in a number of ways. "They'll save time and money in terms of infrastructure, time and money in terms of being stuck in traffic, freight getting to where it's needed to go faster and more efficiently, and public transport moving more quickly," Mr Koutsantonis said. "The traffic management system using AI can cost as little as $8,000 at an intersection if the infrastructure is already in place without having to put in new infrastructure." The government will look to add more cameras if the trial is successful, with Koutsantonis describing the technology as a "powerful piece of equipment to improve our traffic network". with NCA Newswire Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
