How your organisation can benefit from government incentives now

Eager to support business and protect jobs, governments at all levels have introduced measures and benefits for businesses. While there are many general benefits, like JobKeeper, that have been offered to many businesses, state governments are now offering opportunities to benefit specific industries and sectors including energy and resources. 

UWA Environmental Protection Law: Online Short Course

This short course is for legal practitioners and other professionals interested in the environmental protection regulatory framework in Western Australia, in its national and international contexts.

Dealing with market volatility in the oil and gas industry

The oil and gas industry is experiencing unprecedented volatility since prices slumped in March following the collapse of the OPEC+ supply pact. In the past week alone oil prices have reached historical lows with West Texas crude reaching approximately -US$40 a barrel in future trades. 

Volatility has been driven by reduced output from Russia quickly followed by lockdowns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. This is impacting economic growth across the world, with the OECD already lowering its global economic growth estimate for 2020 from 2.9% to 2.4%. The longer the outbreak continues, the greater the decline in global growth and the corresponding fall in demand for energy.

Energy industry and government response to COVID-19

In response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, government and industry have come together to ensure the community, economy and industry are supported. The Council of Australian Governments Energy Council (COAG Energy Council) has formed the Energy Coordination Mechanism (ECM) which is expected to have a complete plan by the end of April. 

The immediate focus of these efforts has been on four areas

What law firms and in-house legal are doing to combat the threat of coronavirus

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is drastically changing how we live, work and even play. For law firms and in-house legal practitioners, that means balancing the concerns of your clients with safeguarding your own staff.  In some ways, small firms have an advantage over their larger counterparts. Moving to remote or online work is simpler with fewer moving parts to accommodate. On the other hand, it can be challenging to meet the increased needs of your clients at this anxious time. For in-house legal services, the size of the challenge becomes one of risk management for their organisation. But even those with strong governance and business continuity plans in place are struggling to manage many of the unprecedented issues they’re facing today. 

COVID-19 AMPLA Update

From the Chair and Executive Director

Further to our update last week, AMPLA is pleased to confirm the following arrangements are now in place to support our staff and members in the coming months:

The impact of coronavirus on the energy and resources industry

The last few weeks have seen the world face an unprecedented disruption with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). First reported in China, we’re now seeing many countries shutting down for periods of time to try to contain the spread of the virus. Australia is facing a particularly difficult year given the bushfires that ravaged the country recently. Now with COVID-19 adding to the pain, the energy and resources industry is being impacted in several ways outlined below.

March Board Update

From the Chair and Executive Director

AMPLA is closely monitoring developments and advice from both Federal and State Governments regarding the COVID-19 virus.  Given the extraordinary circumstances, we wanted to reach out personally to our members, to provide an update on the changes AMPLA is making to keep our members, guests and staff safe and well, and to ensure the continued delivery of our member services.

February Board Update

From AMPLA Board Chair, Ryan Hartfield:

Welcome to our first edition of Board updates for 2020

Our aim is to provide our members with a regular update following each Board meeting, on the strategic discussions happening around the Board table.