Desmond John Thomas Euen wants a sea port

Readers may have noticed that rumours have resurfaced about the Port of Yamba being targeted as a coal terminal at the end of a west-east rail line linking north-western NSW with the coast.

This plan was first mooted by some of the people involved in unsuccessful lobbying to dam and divert water from the Clarence River catchment system for the benefit of irrigators and mining corporations in the Murray Darling Basin and, at the time was estimated to cost at least $3.5 billion to achieve.

Though the latest manifestation of these rumours owes little to Mal Peters & Co and more to an ‘entrepreneur’ from Booval in Queensland.

According to ASIC documents Desmond John Thomas Euen is the only director, shareholder and company secretary in a $1-1 share company registered in New South Wales on 31 August 2012, Australian Infrastructure Developments Pty Ltd, and elsewhere he has variously described himself as the company’s Managing Director and Executive Director.

Mr. Euen also has a website which appears to be locked or parked:

Whois http://whois.domaintools.com/australianinfrastructuredevelopments.com.au

Domain Name:                     australianinfrastructuredevelopments.com.au
Registrar ID:                    WAR
Registrar Name:                  Web Address Registration
Status:                          ok

Registrant:                      LYNX BUSINESS SERVICES PTY LTD
Registrant ID:                   ABN 56146166574
Eligibility Type:                Company

Registrant Contact ID:           R-006499331-SN
Registrant Contact Name:         Des Euen
Registrant Contact Email:        Visit whois.ausregistry.com.au for Web based WhoIs

Tech Contact ID:                 C-001573771-SN
Tech Contact Name:               Des Euen
Tech Contact Email:              Visit whois.ausregistry.com.au for Web based WhoIs

Name Server:                     ns1.designandhost.net
Name Server:                     ns2.designandhost.net

On doing a Google search of the second company which appears to be associated with Desmond Euen, I found this:

As well as this as yet unexplained and possibly unrelated notice.

It appears to be Mr. Euen’s current goal in life to turn a small working port, on which the local fishing and tourism industries also heavily rely, into a generic freight hub at the end of a phantom west-east rail line and, in the process destroy a significant Yaegl cultural and spiritual site, Dirrangun reef.

He rather arrogantly asserted to one journalist that; the local indigenous population would be handsomely compensated and provided with jobs.

Dirrungun reef and the Clarence River below Harwood Bridge fall within two registered native title claims by the Yaegl people of the Clarence Valley.

Desmond Euen has created a power point presentation to support his grandiose plan but has not yet submitted a proposal to the O’Farrell Government.

He appears to be having trouble getting a hearing from relevant federal and state ministers. Indeed, to date the only ‘meeting’ he seems to have achieved has been a very short one with a senior staffer from the NSW Roads and Ports Minister’s office and it resulted in this statement:

“A proposal of this nature is highly unlikely in the current market environment and the government has no plans for the Port of Yamba”

The ever hopeful Mr. Euen has approached at least one local newspaper and, The Daily Examiner reported on 1 August 2013:

In the wake of a recent story on speculation the Port of Yamba was to be converted into a coal freight hub, the managing director of ADI, Desmond J T Euen contacted the paper.

Mr Euen said he was upset rumours were circulating a coal hub was on the agenda and said in fact his organisation had been speaking to the State Government about converting the Port of Yamba into a freight hub.

He said the development would bring billions of dollars worth of investment and thousands of jobs to the area.

Mr Euen also said a funding deal, from the private sector, was in advanced stages.

By 2 August Mr. Euen had reportedly become insistent "I'll tell you this; the Yamba Port is going to be developed in exactly the way I'm saying it will," Mr Euen said. "And it's got nothing to do with coal" and Clarence Valley Mayor Richie Williamson was showing his usual fence sitting skills when it comes to Lower Clarence issues "We would welcome responsible and sustainable development and jobs in the Clarence Valley….And any proposal that reflects that should be given due consideration on its merit."

If Clarence Valley Council management or its executive has given Mr. Euen any form of encouragement they have seriously misjudged the aspirations and priorities of the Yamba community.

Premier O'Farrell sacks NSW Finance Minister

Under cover of the noise created by the corruption findings against former Labor minister Ian McDonald and Labor MP Eddie Obeid, Barry O'Farrell gets on with the business of sacking his own Finance Minister.

The Illawarra Mercury 1 August 2013:

NSW Finance Minister and Minister for the Illawarra Greg Pearce has been sacked for breaching the ministerial code of conduct just weeks after he returned to the job from stress leave.

NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell said he told Mr Pearce of his decision over the phone at 1.45pm today….

After previously standing by Mr Pearce, Premier Barry O’Farrell today said the finance minister had failed to declare a conflict of interest in appointing lawyer Richard Fisher to the board of Sydney Water…

Mr Pearce had been under fire in recent months following allegations that he was drunk in Parliament and that he had rorted the ministerial travel guidelines over a trip to Canberra.

A report by the Department of Premier and Cabinet in June found that Mr Pearce had breached the state government’s ministerial travel guidelines when he booked a private trip to Canberra through the government’s travel agency.

Mr Pearce paid for the bill upon his return, but saved himself $188 by using the contractor.

Mr Pearce apologised for his actions before announcing that he was taking a month off to recover from ‘‘stress and exhaustion’’…..

Popular Yamba-ites relocate to Cowra

Long term Yamba residents Jim and Georgina See have opted for a tree change. The Cowra Guardian reports that Jim and Georgina are operating a business in the town.

Read more about Jim and Georgina here.

Best wishes Jim & Georgina!

Credit: Image and text from the Cowra Guardian

NSW Nationals MP for Clarence 'Lazybones' Gulaptis and hollow crowing on Facebook and in the media

This was NSW National Party MP for Clarence Chris Gulaptis on his Facebook page on 18 July 2012:

Clarence Valley Regional Airport will get a much-needed $2.12 million upgrade thanks to a generous loan subsidy from the NSW Government’s Local Infrastructure Renewal Scheme.

What a pity that it not-so-innocently slipped his mind that the O’Farrell Government was only offering a NSW LIRS Round One 4 per cent subsidy of the market interest rate and that this involved Clarence Valley Council taking out a $1.06 million third party loan with the balance of the upgrade costs unmet as yet.

Full funding for the $2.12 million regional airport upgrade did not come about until a further $1.06 million came from the Federal Labor Government as a Round Four grant by the Regional Development Australia Fund announced on 12 June 2013 – almost a year later.

Not that much for Gulaptis to crow about there – most of the spade work appeared to have been done by Federal Labor MP for Page Janelle Saffin and Clarence Valley Council.

Chris Gulaptis was back using his favourite political ploy again in August 2013.

This time taking credit for a $3 million commercial loan that Richmond Valley Council is taking out to upgrade the Casino Regional Livestock Exchange.

The Northern Star 1 August 2013:

Member for Clarence, Chris Gulaptis, yesterday announced the council had been awarded a low-interest loan under the NSW Government's Local Infrastructure Renewal Scheme at a fixed 3% interest.

Of course what is really happening is that the O'Farrell Government is granting a 3 per cent subsidy of the market interest rate on a third party loan as part of NSW LIRS Round Two.

And just as before, it is the Federal Labor Government which has provided a grant to improve cattle delivery and receival into the saleyards - this time for a total of $636,000  under the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program. Update: Plus a $3.5 million grant under the Federal Government's Round Five of the Regional Development Australia Fund announced on 6 August 2013.

Once more the heavy lifting appears to have been done by Ms. Saffin and Richmond Valley Council.