Hunter Means Business contacted all major Australian airlines, asking if they were interested in opening up more routes out of Newcastle Airport, in light of the NSW government offering a multi-million-dollar support package for new domestic and international destinations.
They all responded with varying degrees of vagueness. In the interest of the ongoing commercial negotiations, I'll keep the who-said-what's to the side, but there's plenty of intrigue that can be gained from reading between the lines of their responses.
"We have a pipeline of new aircraft arriving in coming years and are always looking for opportunities to grow our network, however we have no new announcements to make," said one airline.
It may seem like a definitive statement, but in the crafty world of corporate public relations, that sentence could also be interpreted as "we have no new announcements to make [yet]".
"We are constantly reviewing our flying network but we don't have current plans to fly internationally from Newcastle," said another airline.
Again, what appears to be a hard no. However the response did not address any questions relating to domestic routes, making it conspicuous in its absence.
Lastly, the final airline said it always considers opportunities to add capacity to existing and new routes where supported by customer demand.
"It is important Newcastle Airport secures international services to ensure that significantly higher passenger charges required to fund the international terminal redevelopment and associated infrastructure are not borne by domestic travellers," the final airline said.
An odd response. Despite giving no indication of whether it was exploring new routes, the final airline appears to be very invested in Newcastle Airport securing an international route, apparently to ensure the price of current (or new) domestic flights remains stable.
How very curious. Watch this space.
Former ambassador's wise words
Australia needs to become more comfortable taking risks with small-to-medium enterprises if it wants to further innovation and keep talent from looking at investing in other global markets, Arthur Sinodinos has told a Newcastle business briefing.
The Hunter born-and-bred former Australian Ambassador to the US addressed a breakfast of business leaders hosted by Sparke Helmore Lawyers and Committee for the Hunter last week.
Mr Sinodinos, who is currently the partner and chair of The Asia Group's Australia Practice, talked about opportunities for the Hunter, the rise of China and the possible consequences for Australia of a Donald Trump victory. The former Liberal senator said if Australia was to foster innovation, governments needed to be more comfortable with risk.
"That sort of culture of incentivisation, the sort of culture of risk taking in the US, this feeling that we're big and bold and we can do anything, and this sense of limitless possibilities," he said.
He said if Trump were to remove the Inflation Reduction Act if he wins the November election in the US, it could be beneficial to Australia as there would be less competition from the US on projects.
"On the other hand, the incentives to do clean energy stuff may be reduced because you don't have the US putting pressure on its allies and partners, and China, the biggest emitter, to do more," he said.
Australia, and the Hunter, were well positioned in the energy transition, but "we've got to get on with it". "There is an advantage to moving as quickly as possible," he said.
"The reality is that places like the Hunter have a great capacity to do this. Frankly, if we can show other countries how you do a just energy transition, that's a big thing in itself, how you take coal-fired power stations and the people who work there into a new environment and create new jobs."
Tug boats simulator
The Port of Newcastle is the new home of tugboat training excellence, with the official opening of Svitzer's $1.5-million facility,
The centre, which includes a tug boat simulator will help train the next generation of Australia's tug boat pilots and masters. It also sets the stage for the two TRAnsverse tugs coming into the Port in 2025, which will be the first of their design in Australia, and the second and third deployed globally.
The facility will also provide training for emergency scenarios, such as a ship losing engine power, along with changes in Port operating conditions and future port diversification opportunities like offshore wind and container ships.
Hunter Means Business is a weekly column proudly flying the flag for the region's economic sector, published every Tuesday. Got a tip? Email jamieson.murphy@newcastleherald.com.au
