Check out these two adverts for the same place - one to sell, one to rent.
The owner must be dreaming.

The unit is for sale at $378,000, has been so since September and already has had its price reduced by $10,000.

http://www.realestate.com.au/cgi-bin/rsear...5&t=ren&ag=&cu=

It currently has no tenants and is also advertised for least at $290 per week. (slightly above market rent for similar places)

http://www.realestate.com.au/cgi-bin/rsear...1&t=ren&ag=&cu=

Why would anyone buy this place?!

You'd receive $290 per week in rent (for probably 40 weeks per year at this price)
but you'd be paying out $440 in interest per week (based on 90% LVR)
Management fees and Body corp would be another $50 per week.
It explains why its still for sale as there are plenty of places like this for sale in the area.

I value this unit at about $150,000 and even then it would make a marginal investment.

It just goes to show ludicrous the aussie market still is even though the crash has been underway for a year now.

A lesson for you english - dont hang around watching and waiting for price falls. Get another hobby for a year or so and just keep a sideways eye on the market.
Many house price fall will come from foreclosures as the stupidity and ignorance of people will keep them from seeing what is happening so they will keep trying to pay the interest only portion of their loan thinking things will change soon. This can go on for ages.

Absolutely right. Last time (1989 in the UK) it went on for about 5 years before prices turned upwards again - and even then they turned really slowly giving anyone interested plenty of time to buy in at the lowest prices for a decade.

In the last crash when IRs rocketed, people bravely held out for about year before we saw the number of foreclosures surge. This is perhaps understandable - people didn't want to sell their homes at the first sign of a downturn, and instead tried to ride out the rough patch. It was only after a good year or so when unemployment ballooned and families got sick of living on beans on toast that the bankruptcies really took off. At very trough in 1994/95, many were still handing their keys back, seemingly unable to see another way out of the negative equity they were sitting on at the time...

Logically, UK house prices should fall quicker than Australian house prices, because we do not have negative gearing which is one of the factors which has made Australian house prices so insane.

Having lived in Oz for 6 months, Aug 2003 - Feb 2004 (Perth). I'd be interested to know what exactly is happening there. I spoke to many people who had invested in BTL.

One, in particular, had bought about 4 houses in a very short space of time. At this time, prices in Perth were still rising. I read somewhere that 12% of home owners in Australia had purchased a second/BTL property/ies.

What is becoming of these investors, are prices coming down in WA?

prices are now falling everywhere. Not very fast though. It seems too many are anxious to hold on to get the price it was valued at last year because this is what they have refinanced on. Number of properties available for sale across Australia is rising by approximately 2-3% per week.

South East Qld has around 30,000 properties on the market with about 500 more being added each week and about one tenth of this number selling each week - its not going to be a pretty 2005.

Darwin is still going up in price - they seem to be the last to catch on. Darwinians say its because investors are beginning to realise that Darwin is a great place to invest due to the high rental yields of around 6%.

Darwins doing well because the Defence forces are moving in there. Townsville will do very poorly when they relise that the Army is leaving.

Darwin sucks in Summer. Very Humid. Not for me that's for sure.

Last I heard SE qld is suffering from 1'000 people moving here a week. Quick note to anyone thinking of joining in.... WE are full. The roads are clogged, road rage is common place as is car park rage, trolley rage, pedestrian rage. Our infrastructure is not coping.... ahh what the hell one more wont matter. come on in. Just make sure that you leave your attitude at the border.

Err, I hate to point it out but the return on cash in Australia is at least 5.25%, and I'm sure it's possible to get higher than that on high-interest savings accounts; I would expect at least a 2% risk premium for "investing" in Darwin, and probably a lot more than that. Therefore a 6% yield is looking decidedly shite.





?

Especially if you factor in risk of capital loss

Heres a good rate

http://www.nedbank.co.za/website/content/I...rates/index.asp

The currency risk is too high on the rand imo.

Mate,

There is a high possibilty of the Wife & I migrating to Oz within the next few years.

I said this before but here goes again, Oz is a lovely country and the people are just great, but I am fully aware of the problems living there etc. Overall, I think it is a worthwhile move for kids, quality of life and all that.

It will have to Melbourne becausewe would be going under the Victoria State Nomination scheme, which requires 2 years minimum in that State......no problems there!

What are your views, (or indeed anyone's views), of the future of Melbourne property prices. I hear that are falling slightly, which would be good news for a potential immigrant......but how far do you think they will fall?

Look forward to hearing from anyone with an opinion.

Perth prices have had a fall in the low to mid range last year, but that seems to have stabilised, and the high end is still reasonably strong. The local economy is very strong due to a very strong resources sector and high commodity prices so there are quite a few people making serious money.

That said, the number of transactions has dropped a lot and there is a lot of stuff sitting on the market for months. Whether the market will go down further will depend a lot on what happens with the global economy - if resource prices drop in the next 12 months the local property market will go down with them.

I STR'd 12 months ago and have not regretted it so far, the place we are renting is far better than the place we sold, and the place we sold has probably dropped 10% in value since .

Melbourne house prices will probably fall quite a bit over the next few years I would imagine.

What kind of work are you going to be looking for? If you are a professional, expect a big pay cut moving to Oz and expect to pay a lot more income tax....that's if you can find a job at all. So many of my highly qualified/experienced friends over there are unemployed.

I also think Australia is going to have the worst recession of all the developed countries when it finally happens this time around.

Australia IS going to have a huge recession. This is not just me being a doom monger - I'm stating the obvious. We are a country that relies on our xports yet our trade deficit is huge and doesnt look like going down.

The economy is strong but this is soley the result of cheap money and house prices rising crazily over the last 5 years .

I heard this story today from a mate who;s a financial planner. He has a client who bought his house for $65K about 8 years ago. They currently owe $280K on it due to MEWing. The house was valued at $300K last year. $140K would be a more realistic value (and i'm trying to be generous).

The important point is this. Where has the $200K or so that they've MEWed gone?
Answer: who knows but its whats kept the economy pumping along.

This is no isolated incident. plenty are in the same boat (which they bought with equity withdrawal)

We have TV comercials with banks telling people to spend up big on all sorts of cr@p using equity.
We have ordinary people discussing "dead equity" (ie equity in houses thats being wasted by not being used on investments or otherwise) see

What is going to happen to spending when house prices stop rising and MEWing opportunities are gone(or in fact go down as they are doing).
Whats going to drive the spending and the economy then?

There is no hurry to buy in Melbourne but if you are interested in an apartment in the Docklands or southbank here is a choice of about 200 for prices ranging from 100K and 200K GBP. peanuts really.

I agree Aussie Lad. Australia is headed for a recession in a big way. It is going to be a real bad one.

Here in Australia the Liberal party has an undeserved reputation for being great economic managers. When they got in the economy entered a huge growth period and hoWARd got the glory.

How's this for economic management? hoWARd on being questioned about excessively rising home prices.... "I don't hear any homeowners complaining about their new wealth"

or this one "we need to export more. We can't expect Australians to stop spending money"

The last time our economy looked this risky Labor introduced high interest rates to bring "the recession we had to have". The Liberals answer is to suggest that we export more. Like the exporters weren't trying.

Anectdotal evidence. My oldies bought a house in '93 for $130k. Still owe $130k. Spent all the money renovating the house (deck etc etc) and on a new car. This is despite the fact that my old man received a $100k redundancy and got a higher paying job straight away!

Everywhere I look there are Queenslanders being raised and built in underneath. They are spending money they don't have.

Aussie Lad - I know the Ad;s you are talking about. Which bank? As soon as I saw them I remarked how unethical it is to encourage homeowners to borrow against their home to go on a holiday, buy a boat etc (this is what the ads were encouraging).

It;s all gunna end in tears and probably soon

In that case just about every ad in the UK is unethical, we're swamped with "re-mortgage your home and blow the money" type ads wall-to-wall.

True. But it seems the debt to income ratio in Australia is MUCH worse than the UK...and that's saying something!

http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0...5E28477,00.html

zzg,

See household debt ratio charts on page 4, Australia has certainly zoomed up, levels in the UK and Aus though look similar at over 120% ish as at 2003, about the same levels where Japan's economy imploded.

http://www.rba.gov.au/PublicationsAndResea...3/bu_0303_1.pdf

Yikes! Look at household debt in Holland! Looks like almost 200% of disposable income!

Its a Global thing, please post link!!

This time a year ago, I was working in Harvey Norman in WA (i wont say which one!), in the electrical dept.

It's unbeliveable the the money people were spending on home cinema rooms, barbeques, fridges, etc etc. Taking advantage of interest free credit and the equity on their homes.

The boss was spending his new found wealth on jet skis and boats and a flash apartment.

I wonder how long this will all last...

A population of 20million, Europe in its entirety fits into WA alone.

Masses of untapped reserves

I think Australia will be getting a good run over the next few decades.

The new problem is congestion and that is just never going to happen in Australia, unless the Labour Party get in.

http://www.rba.gov.au/PublicationsAndResea...3/bu_0303_1.pdf



See page 4 in the above report.

Not quite, as most of Australia is uninhabitable. I wouldn't hold my breath for the discovery of any large natural resource reserves either.

Ha! Even the CIA acknowledges that Australian house prices are in a bubble!




http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/as.html

Is that true GLFTB? Why? Is it just too hot? Or is it lack of water that is the problem? Surely you could have desalinisation plants and pipelines to supply the interior with water?



I though there were shedloads of tin and iron and other commodities in the outback? Isn't Oz mostly an export-based/commodity economy?

The situation here in Holland is rather different as mortgage interest payments are tax deductable. With a top rate of tax of around 50% there is little incentive to pay off ones mortgage and so most people prefer to have an interest only loan, saving money elsewhere, e.g. in shares or mutual funds. Nevertheless in the last few years a similar bubble has developed as in the UK with ridiculously high property prices. Likewise many individuals have withdrawn equity in order to pay for home improvements, luxuries, holidays etc.

http://www.somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18683

Good news the rent went up

Got a couple of 3br houses at Roxby Down (mining town in northern SA), had them for 12 months, first lot of tenants have moved out, they where paying $250wk.

Have changed PM. (Great move)

New PM showed some prospective tenants through yesterday and they are happy to pay $310wk with a 12month lease. Paper work is going through today. What a nice increase! Also had one of the mining companies look at them but they wanted the carpets replacing and would only pay $290 and wanted a 6yr lease. Wasn't a lot of scope for rent increase in the lease.

I'm happy.
Thought I would share my happiness with others.
Cheers
quoll


Quote:
Originally Posted by Punchy
When the mine runs dry your IP will be worth how much? My suggestion is to put that money away for a rainy day.

I'll think of you when Today Tonight et al post the sob stories regarding housing bubble and paper millionairs


Thanks for your concerns, the mine has another 50 years of productive life. Yes the properties in the area will be worth diddly squat when the workers leave.

Everything we do in life has certain risks. It is just a matter of weighing risk to return. I'm happy.

Have a nice new year.
quoll



Yeah I'd be real happy knowing that I was paying $60 a week more than the previous tenants.

Ony the British are foolish enough to sell off their Oil and Natural Resources to foreign competition.

Offshore Oil and Gas Developments
Australia is considered a prime source for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), with the industry being drawn to the region's strong reserve base, close proximity to the Asia-Pacific markets, and stable political climate. The areas off the Northwest Shelf and Victoria boast Australia's most significant oil and natural gas reserves, generated during the geological development of the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras. The continent's major oil and gas fields, in various stages of development, are centered in these areas.

However, the economic health of Australia's offshore petroleum industry does not currently mirror that of the country's stock market. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported expenditures on petroleum exploration were $191 million in the fourth quarter of 1999, 25 percent lower than the fourth quarter of 1998. Total fourth quarter 1999 petroleum expenditures fell 19 percent from the third quarter 1999, the majority of which was in drilling expenditure (down $26 million). Spending is down, and that, of course, is not good for underwater contractors. Like the rest of the world, Australian offshore contractors are watching the oil prices rise, and hoping that the amount of support work rises with it.

Bayu-Undan- Located approximately 310 miles (500km) off the northern tip of Australia in 262 feet (80m) of water in the Timor Sea, the Bayu-Undan field falls within Area A of the Zone of Cooperation, an area jointly administered by Australia and Indonesia. Phillips Petroleum Company operates the field and holds a 50.3 percent interest. Phillips' co-venturers in the project include Santos, Inpex, Kerr-McGee, Petroz/Emet, and British-Borneo.

The field, discovered in 1995, covers an area of 62 square miles (160km2). Another nearby well, the Trulek No.1 exploration well, was discovered in November 1996 and is being saved as a potential future production well. The total recoverable reserves from the U.S.$1.5 billion Bayu-Undan project are estimated to be around 400 million barrels of liquids (light oil and LPG), making it one of the biggest oil and gas developments in the region.

A 50/50 joint venture between Aker Marine Contractors and Clough Engineering of Australia has recently been awarded a U.S.$28 million contract to handle the engineering, management, and marine operations required for transporting two platform decks for the Central Production Processing Complex out to the field and installing them on top of the preinstalled steel jacket substructures. Aker Maritime, parent company of Aker Marine Contractors, is also participating in the detailed engineering for the Bayu-Undan development and considers Australia to be a market of high priority, with several more projects expected to be started during the next couple of years.

Laminaria-Corallina- Located in the Timor Sea, 340 miles (550km) northwest of Darwin, these fields are operated by Woodside Petroleum under a Joint Petroleum Exploration Agreement between Woodside Shell and BHP Petroleum.

The Laminaria field's initial development is made up of four subsea production wells producing 120,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) linked to the world's largest Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading vessel (FPSO), the Northern Endeavour, permanently moored between the Laminaria and Corallina fields. Initial expectations for the Corallina field are around 50,000 bopd from two subsea production wells linked to the FPSO.

The area is treacherous for exploration and subsea contracting. Water depths increase rapidly from 164 feet (50m) on Australia's continental shelf, to 1,280 feet (400m) near Laminaria and 1,640 feet (500m) over Corallina, before deepening to over 6,560 feet (2,000m) to the north in the Timor Trough.

The design, construction, and installation of the subsea facilities was carried out by a joint venture between Coflexip Stena Offshore and JP Kenny. The subsea layout comprises two main drilling centers as well as a separate gas disposal well. The Laminaria Central four-slot manifold and the Corallina two-slot manifold are tied back to the FPSO via 10-inch production flowlines. The subsea facilities are controlled by an electro-hydraulic control system.

Northwest Shelf- Along with partners BHP, BP Amoco, Chevron, Royal Dutch/Shell, and a Mitsubishi-Mitsui joint venture, Woodside Petroleum co-owns and operates the North West Shelf Project offshore Australia. The project's first phase, domestic gas production, involved the construction of one of the world's largest capacity offshore gas production platforms in the North Rankin Field. Once treated, the gas is then piped to Perth, Australia. The largest natural resources development in Australia, the project produces natural gas, which is marketed to utilities and businesses in western Australia, and LNG, which is sold mainly to Japanese utilities. The gas/condensate reserves could total as much as $12 billion.

Greater Gorgon- This $6 billion field is being developed by CTMS, a consortium of Chevron, Texaco, Mobil, and Shell. The Gorgon area gas fields are located off the coast of Western Australia, 37 miles (60km) from Barrow Island and 124 miles (200km) west of Dampier.

Five fields have been discovered: Gorgon, Chrysaor, Dionysus, West Tryal Rocks, and Spar. The gas flows along a 143 mile (230km) pipeline to an LNG plant on Australia's Burrup Peninsula. It is then exported to Asian buyers. In addition, CTMS owns the rights to several nearby fields that are expected to yield gas/condensate in the future. Water depths in the area can exceed 3,600 feet (1,100m).

Several other Western Australian fields, including the Cornea field off the northern coast and the Jervoise Bay field south of Freemantle, offer high hopes for future natural resource returns, as well.

Inland Contracting
Except for the Murray-Darling River Basin, Australia is almost entirely devoid of internal waterways. Almost two million people live within the Murray-Darling basin, which encompasses roughly 14 percent of the total area of Australia. Another one million Australians who live outside the basin are heavily dependent on its water. This inland river system was used to transport wool and other products from the country districts of New South Wales and Victoria to the coast in the 19th century. However, variable water volumes in the rivers eventually made this transportation hazardous and unreliable, and it was mostly replaced by the railways.

For inland commercial diving contractors, the lack of significant inland waterways means relatively fewer dams and bridges to work on compared to other land masses of comparative size. However, this does not mean that there is no inland contracting market. The high variability in river volumes also limits opportunities for the production of hydroelectricity, which has provided important arguments in support of the construction of several major multiple-purpose dams. Examples include the Snowy Mountains Scheme, a hydroelectric and irrigation complex serving New South Wales and Victoria, and Queensland's Burdekin Falls dam. These dams do provide some measure of work for inland commercial diving contractors.

As for ports and their accompanying structures, there are about 70 of commercial significance, with most located on the east coast. Sydney, with nearby Botany Bay, is the most important port for mixed freight. It is followed by Port Hedland, Melbourne, Freemantle, Newcastle, Brisbane, Hay Point, Port Walcott, Gladstone, Port Kembla, and Port Adelaide.

Subsea Telecom
Telstra Corporation is one of Australia's largest companies, and controls practically all subsea telecommunications cables in and around Australia. The result of deregulation over the last decade, Telstra is partly owned by the government, but is becoming increasingly privatized. It has an interesting family tree.

Telstra's history can be traced back to 1901, when the Postmaster-General's (PMG) Department was established to manage all domestic telephone, telegraph, and postal services for the newly established country. The Overseas Telecommunications Commission (OTC) was established in 1946 to manage international telecommunications.

The Australian Telecommunications Commission, trading as Telecom Australia, was created as a separate entity in July 1975 following the breakup of the PMG. Continuing to trade as Telecom Australia, the Commission became the Australian Telecommunications Corporation in 1989. OTC and Telecom Australia then merged into the Australian and Overseas Telecommunications Corporation Limited in 1992. Telstra Corporation Limited became the legal corporate name of the merged entity in 1993.

While Australia has moved toward open competition, Telstra is still the leader in the subsea telecom game. With such a long company history behind it, Telstra finds itself responsible for many out-of-service and uncharted cables that have been lost over the years. When they are discovered from time to time, these long forgotten cables can mean work for contractors. Telstra works continually with the Royal Australian Navy Hydrographic Office to come up with location records for the uncharted cables.

The Australian Diver Accreditation Scheme
Commercial diving operations Down Under are conducted by standards found in the Australian Diver Accreditation Scheme (ADAS), created by the government and based on the U.K. Health & Safety Executive model. This competency scheme, Australian Standard (AS) 2815, was last modified in 1992 and is split into four levels of graduating difficulty.

The first level (AS2815.1) covers scuba to 100 feet (30m). Divers are limited to the use of small hand tools on dives with direct access to the surface. No compression diving is allowed. The second level (AS2815.2) trains surface-supplied diving to 100 feet (30m). The use of cutting and welding equipment, as well as pneumatic and hydraulic tools, is introduced. Level three (AS2815.3) accreditation allows a commercial diver to work offshore. The use of wet bells, hyperbaric chambers, and surface decompression with oxygen are covered in ADAS level three training. Mixed-gas saturation diving is covered in level four (AS2815.4).

Australian Company Profiles
Gray Diving Services
Gray Diving Services (GDS) is an onshore diving contractor based in Sydney, Australia, and has been in business since 1945 when Bill Gray founded the company. The company offers services to the civil construction industry, shipping, government departments, and engineering companies throughout Australia and the Asian areas. Gray has developed a niche market in diving support and inspection services related to repair, upgrading, and renovation of dams, together with the services normally expected of an inland/coastal diving contractor.

Operations Manager Russ Gately reports the inland market on the continent is strong. "We believe the onshore market is growing, particularly in our area of expertise. We expect that growth will continue into the foreseeable future. We are finding that diving tasks are factored into many of the engineering projects as an integral component of the works rather than an afterthought, as was often the case in earlier times. This is probably due to engineers at the planning stage having a better understanding of the capabilities of divers and a more professional profile of the diving industry in general." GDS also operates the Commercial Diver Training Centre (CDTC), which trains up to ADAS Part 3 and is accredited through the Australian Diver Accreditation Scheme. The Australian curriculum is based on the HSE format and forms the basis for recognition with the U.K. authorities. The majority of the students gain work in the onshore sector initially, with a significant number moving into the offshore industry after gaining further experience. Placement rates are virtually 100 percent at this time, with continuing demand for qualified personnel.

Gately says GDS maintains a core of seven permanent personnel, and when necessary, supplements these numbers from a pool of freelance divers. "The total number obviously depends on the work load at the time. It has been as high as 30, but is more commonly between 10 and 15."

GDS often recruits the students trained at its training center. "We do not require our employees to be specifically trained through CDTC," says Gately. "However, a number of the graduates have gained permanent employment with us, mainly due to the fact that we get to see what they are like as a trainee and get in early with an employment offer. Irrespective of where our divers are trained, they must hold an ADAS or equivalent qualification before we can employ them."

On commercial diving safety in Australia, Gately says, "We carry out our diving operations in accordance with Australian Standard AS/NZS 2299.1 Occupational Diving Operations, Standard Operational Practice, and in accordance with our Diving Operations Manual. The standard lays down the minimal statutory requirements, which are augmented by our own manual. I believe the safety requirements, as they stand, are appropriate and not unnecessarily burdensome, and in several areas could be improved. I would personally like to see mandatory voice communication for all working dives and the use of scuba restricted to short, shallow inspection dives.

"We have a blanket ban on surface oriented mixed gas in Australia, which I would like to see changed, as I believe that with the right equipment and personnel training, this method of diving can and is used safely elsewhere. I see it as another tool to be used where applicable."

Gately says one of the major problems with the onshore industry in Australia is the entry of small organizations into the industry who lack either the necessary funding or knowledge to provide their employees with the required level of safety.

"Regulation of the industry is at an all-time low, with most of the Workplace Health & Safety inspectors either moved into other departments or not replaced as they vacate the position," Gately says. "This has come about because the government has decided that onshore diving will be a de-regulated industry - meaning not dangerous - while the offshore industry remains regulated. You figure it out, I can't."

Still, the Australian commercial diving community has come a long way. "I think the more professional profile has come about due to structured training paths for divers and a perception of the diver as a skilled worker rather than diving as a sideline skill," he says. "If we look back over 20 years or so, many of the divers came from some other background and eventually became divers more through association with diving operations rather than a planned career. I believe the business has become more technical in nature and the technology is probably more readily embraced by the type of person who sees diving as a career prospect."

GDS occasionally employs ROVs on jobs, but does not own the vehicle, instead choosing to subcontract ROV services. "At the present time, the demand does not justify the purchase cost," says Gately. "However, if the demand increases, we will take a serious look at buying one of the smaller open frame inspection-class vehicles that can be easily deployed from a small vessel." GDS specializes in the design and construction of drilling template jigs for coring concrete in zero or near zero visibility conditions. They have also modified surface coring equipment to facilitate coring for post tension anchoring applications and for coring holes into concrete for attachment purposes.

Gray does not perform saturation diving work or own saturation equipment, but Gately says the company has the in-house expertise to do this type of work if required.

As for equipment, Gately says Gray purchases equipment from local suppliers and overseas suppliers, using both supplier catalogs and the Internet. The company does not usually attend industry conferences, but has in the past attended DEMA. "We generally find that conferences dealing with the commercial diving industry are not held in our part of the world; if they were, we would attend," says Gately.

Pacific Commercial Diving Supply Pty. Limited
Pacific Commercial Diving Supply was formed in 1984 with the prime purpose of servicing and supplying commercial and military divers in Australia and New Zealand with the best equipment available and of meeting the ongoing trends in new equipment from around the world.

It now has two operating centers in Australia (Sydney and Perth), and has become a major local supplier to underwater contractors in both the offshore oil and onshore diving industries. Pacific represents most major international diving equipment manufacturers, including Diving Systems International, Broco, Ocean Technology Systems, Stanley Hydraulics, JW Automarine, Fibron, Divex, Interspiro, Impulse Enterprises, Viking Suits, 3D Gauges, Amron International, Deep Sea Power & Light, Harris Acoustics, and Scottish Anglo. The company offers service from its Web site and produces a 200-page catalog.

Though their primary area of operations is still in the sale, service, and rental of underwater and hyperbaric equipment and ROVs, the company also manufactures certain items that meet local requirements better and more economically than imported products. These include underwater video systems, air and gas panels, hose fittings, and numerous speciality items.

The formalization of new diving regulations has brought about an increase in the demand for safer equipment. This has served to increase sales. Says Pacific's John Hempstalk, "Like most countries, Australia is affected by world economic fluctuations, and business activities alter accordingly. Generally, the Australian contracting industry is in a reasonable position with the regular highs and lows mainly due to government or oil company spending. ROV operations have increased over the last few years due to deeper water activities in the offshore arena."

Descend Underwater Training Centre
Descend Underwater Training Centre is a unique Australian company. Founded in 1979, Descend is government accredited to train commercial divers to the Australian Standard AS2815. Descend also operates a commercial diving contracting division. It specializes in inland diving tasks, including dam and reservoir structures, contaminated environments, still and video photography, welding and cutting, explosives, and heavy tool construction tasks in support of the power generation and water distribution authorities. It also has a full-service sport diving facility, which included retail sales and hydrostatic testing.

Descend's Des Walters on the Australian underwater contracting picture: "Current trends in Australia to more vigorously regulate the diving industry has meant an increase in training and certification of not only construction divers but also scientific, aquaculture, and film industry divers. This, coupled with an increase in offshore activity, is currently showing a confident market."

Descend counts on Pacific Commercial Diving Supply for special equipment, helmets, and hot water generators. General equipment, wetsuits, scuba regulators, etc., are either purchased directly from the Australian manufacturers or from wholesale agents for imported gear.

"Descend is active in an inland area covering the Murray River from its inception in the mountains to the South Australian border, some 600km," says Walters. "The river has numerous dams and locks. In addition, we serve the smaller water distribution reservoirs used in towns and cities that draw their water from the Murray River."

Walters expects continued growth for the company, particularly in the training market. "We attract overseas students to train in Australia because the Australian Divers Accreditation Scheme (ADAS) certification allows them to work not only in Australia, but also in England, South Africa, Middle East, and New Zealand. Unlike our counterparts in American schools, our graduates can work immediately. No apprenticeship system operates in Australia."

All of Descend's training is completed under the ADAS system and culminates with a government-issued Certificate of Competency for successful students. The syllabus follows all levels of Australian Standard AS 2815. "Most of our students complete levels one, two, and three over a three-month continuous course with the aim of working offshore. In 1998, Descend trained 54 percent of all Level 2 divers trained in Australia and, in a recent survey, we found 84 percent were full-time employed in the diving industry," says Walters. Descend generally exhibits only at the Australia Scuba Expo, though Walters says they are contemplating visiting Asia, and DEMA in the U.S.

Pacific Marine Group
Based in Townsville, North Queensland, Pacific Marine Group (PMG) provides diving services, marine contracting, and engineering in both the offshore oil and inland contracting arenas.

Dive Superintendent John Harris says the business climate for Australian underwater contractors is holding steady. "Government legislation and the need to enforce standards of practice have a strong impact on marine contracting in Australia. Our region's market is growing, with the need to upgrade aging infrastructure and with new projects starting. There is no one specific area of focus for us as underwater contractors."

A full-service contractor, Pacific Marine offers complete marine project management capabilities for the following applications: all commercial diving activities, vessel fender and brow hire, construction of wharfs and jetties, mooring installation and refurbishment, pile driving, marina dredging and installation, marine fabrication and machining, vessel and other marine equipment supply, complete NDT inspection services, towing and salvage activity, and ROV surveys. The Group holds approvals with Det Norske Veritas, ABS Pacific, Bureau Veritas, and Lloyds for Topside Inspection and Underwater Inspection of Vessels.

The Group's premises includes a large workshop, 9,000 square meter storage yard, office facility, and full access wharf facility. Their considerable equipment spread includes two 54-inch decompression chambers and three containerized dive spreads, as well as a 105-foot (32m) tug, a 79-foot (24m) piling barge, and many smaller vessels.

Founded in 1986, Pacific Marine Group was the first commercial diving company in Australia to obtain International accreditation of the Company Quality System, based on ISO 9002, in 1993. The company is in the process of setting up a Papua New Guinea company to better target work in that area of operations.

Structural Wet Welding on the Mission River Bridge
For the past several years, Pacific Marine Group has carried out what is believed to be Australia's largest ever wet welding project and associated underwater inspection program. The crocodile infested water of the Mission River in Far North Queensland is the location for one of Australia's largest and most remote wet welding projects ever undertaken. The four-year project, involving a major refurbishment of the Mission River bridge, is being undertaken for bauxite mining company, Comalco.

The 1040m long bridge, supports a single lane road and railway track used by bauxite carrying trains which are up to 33 wagons in length with a gross weight of up to 5,000 tons. The bridge, constructed in 1971, comprises 55 spans of 18m long and one 36m span for vessel navigation. The substructure is a composite pile system with the upper part (5-13m) being of pre-cast, pre-stressed concrete and the bottom sections being of hollow octagonal steel section (HP2 pile section) or H-pile section. The concrete pile was cast off-site with its lower end containing a short stub of the steel section protruding approximately 450 mm. After transport to the site, a longer length of the steel section (referred to as the pile tip) was butt welded onto this stub (this weld is referred to as the "butt weld").

The original design intent was to have the steel pile tip driven into the riverbed and only the concrete part exposed in the river. However the depth of channel in the Mission River was such that within 23 piers there are 213 composite piles with their steel pile tips exposed above the riverbed. The length of steel tip exposed varies up to 11 meters. All except one of the exposed steel tips are of HP2 section. The HP2 section is an octagonal hollow section comprising two-trough shaped segments welded together and is the equivalent of a 400mm tube with a wall thickness of 16mm. There are 17 piles in the bridge which are not of composite construction but entirely comprise a steel HP2 section from toe to headstock. These were generally installed prior to the main piling program in order to prove founding conditions.

During underwater inspection of the bridge support piles in 1996, significant corrosion including holes were found on the exposed pile tips, with the worst areas being at the butt weld location. Subsequent investigation showed that Sulphate Reducing Bacteria (SRB) predominantly caused the corrosion. Due to this corrosion various operating restrictions were applied to the bridge and extensive analysis work commenced to determine the repairs required. The objectives were to restore the bridge so that there were no operating restriction above those that previously existed and to ensure a 30-year life. Extensive diving work has been necessary over several years to inspect the piles, repair defects, and bond together the pile tips so that cathodic protection can protect the piles. The piles also required sealing, in an attempt to prevent internal SRB induced corrosion from continuing. The work is made difficult by the nature of the site including; the existence of salt water crocodiles up to five meters long, sharks, box jelly fish and stone fish in the estuary. Tidal flows and the monsoon season, restrict the window for economic dive campaigns and significantly reduce underwater visibility.

Welded repairs to the bridge were to be completed using the wet welding process. In order to complete this work successfully PMG approached Hydroweld in 1997 to provide the wet welding technology required by Comalco. Hydroweld, an internationally recognized leader in wet welding, undertook material testing and a review of Comalco's own in-house procedures prior to developing welding procedures. A sample analysis of the bridge piles material showed that it had a relatively high carbon equivalent (CE) of up to 0.45 CE, which meant that the material is more susceptible to hydrogen embrittlement and under-bead cracking when welded. Bearing this in mind, Hydroweld set about developing formal wet welding procedures based on Comalco's class 'A' structural weld quality requirements and in accordance the AWS D3.6 Specification for Underwater Welding. These procedures included the use of Hydroweld FS wet welding electrodes, which have successfully been used to weld navel submarines with a CE of 0.47, at near surface weld quality.

To ensure the welding procedures provided a true representation of the production welds, it was agreed to complete them on site. On completion the wet welded test coupons were sent to an independent test facility (Australian NDT) where the destructive and non-destructive testing was completed. Australian NDT were amazed at the quality of weld produce and "couldn't believe that they were completed underwater." The results of the testing more than met the AWS D3.6 Specification and Comalco's additional requirements whereupon the wet welding procedures were approved for production.

To get the project started Hydroweld initially provided experienced wet welder divers from the UK who, as with the welding procedures, completed the welder qualifications on site. In addition to the UK welder divers, Hydroweld put together a job specific wet welder-training program, based on its internationally recognized wet welder training courses run throughout the world on behalf of The Welding Institute (TWI). The course, which was run at PMG's underwater welding facility in Townsville, provided wet welder training for Australian divers, bringing them up to a standard required to complete the welder qualifications and represented the first training course of its kind in Australia. Hydroweld has continued to provide PMG with an ongoing wet welder training program over a three-year period with a result that PMG can now provide an all Australian team to complete the structural and non-structural welding.

The wet welding repair program to the Mission Bridge proved to be an enormous task. Since 1997 the wet welding time alone totals over 2000 hours completing, for example, some 206 structural plate repairs, 75 structural repairs to the butt welds, 522 non-structural repair welds and 220 welds to the CP bonds. All of the wet welding was completed using Hydroweld FS wet welding electrodes with a total length of weld metal deposited being in the region of 5.75 km. This has required some 38,500 electrodes totalling 1.4 tons. Bob Brown, Wharf and Bridge Officer, for Comalco, said "We used Hydroweld FS wet welding electrodes as they were proved to produce better mechanical properties in the weld metal, important on a rail bridge with its higher potential for fatigue." Hydroweld also provided backup support and offered advice, problem-solving solutions, personnel as required, and set up the testing process and site-proving the procedures. Hydrowelds' Phil Boulter (underwater welding specialist) put together the welding procedures, training pr ogram and provided onsite wet welding supervision. Terry Dodd, Managing director of PMG, said "by including world leading underwater welding consultants, Hydroweld, in the team Comalco got more than they ever thought they'd get on the technical welding side of the project. It has been very successful."

PMG carry out regular inspection programs on the bridge to ensure the welds continue to meet the AWS D3.6 and Comalco's requirements. As structural welds they are continually under load including cyclic loading but to date show no signs of fatigue or deterioration.

To provide protection against predators, divers have to work in the confines of a net enclosure supported by pontoons which were placed around the pier being worked on. Even so, occasionally crocodiles had to be coaxed out of the nets having climbed in to them overnight. Dodd said, "The divers saw up to three crocodiles a day and sharks were also often seen in the evening as they came up the estuary to feed."

PMG's team of up to 19 divers has completed over 3,000 dives so far, equating to 5280 in-water man hours, with up to four divers in the water at a time on a pier. In 1998 approximately 10 percent of the total in-water time was lost due to decompression, so in 1999 Nitrox was introduced as the breathing medium for dives down to 56 feet (17m). An equivalent air depth using a 60/40 Nitrox mix is used for 35 feet (10.6m) thus the no stop time is significantly extended from 60 minutes to 200 minutes using USN tables. The alliance agreement between Comalco and PMG and the expertise of the work crew has resulted in the diving operations running smoothly with all parties working together towards a common goal.

The year 2000 should see the completion of the wet welded repair work to the satisfaction of Comalco and while further inspection programs are being planed, the bridge should get a stamp of approval and have the current operating restrictions lifted. Comalco can also be reassured that if, in the future, any further corrosion problems become apparent they have at their disposal, a proven, reliable and high quality wet welded repair method. For information call Michael Pett at Hydroweld UK + 44 (0) 121 378 1230, or e-mail: hydroweld@compuserve.com.

National Underwater and Marine Agency
The National Underwater and Marine Agency Pty Ltd (NUMA) was established by Pete West and Louise Polain to provide underwater and marine support for commercial film and television productions throughout Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.

Pete West has been a professional diver for over 25 years, working throughout Australia and oil fields worldwide. His diving experience ranges from heavy construction to hyperbaric medicine, photography, submersibles, salvage, defense force liaison and film and television. His film and television experience began in the early 1970s.

Louise Polain, the other partner in NUMA has an honors degree in marine science and is a qualified and experienced diving supervisor. She provides production coordination and technical and scientific support on all projects.

NUMA sometimes trains dive crews on the job. The company require their divers to be trained by a commercial diver training school to AS 2815. "These schools provide the basics and we provide the rest on the job," says Polain. "They have to learn film-speak as well as how to operate lights, communications, and a huge array of specialized equipment. Our dive crews have to be multiskilled. We usually prefer to employ divers who have a trade behind them, such as rigging or welding. After they are trained to become commercial divers, we then train them for the film industry." UW

And why do the Yanks just love the Aussies.

Uranium is part of Australia's mining heritage, though only three mines are currently operating. Two more are under development.
Australia's uranium reserves are the world's largest, with 28% of the world's total. Production and exports have recently averaged over 9300 tonnes of uranium oxide (7900 tU) per year.
Australia's uranium is used solely for electricity. It is supplied under arrangements which ensure that none finds its way to countries such as Iraq or North Korea or into nuclear weapons.
In the five years to mid 2004 Australia exported 43,803 tonnes of uranium oxide concentrate (37,143 tU) with a value of over $2 billion to eleven countries around the world.

Gentlemen,

Many thanks for all your comments & views, very much appreciated.

I actually work in 'Corporate Security', (I am not a consultant or anything like that), I am currently in Hong Kong and the work is coming in thick & fast. Business Resumption Planning now being the next big thing here is Asia (which is indeed very sad fact of life).

I accept your points about Australia being full of highly qualified professionals being either unemployed, under paid but all equally over taxed! I lived in Brisbane for 1 years......so I know what you are saying is very true!

It seems to me that Oz is a good place to settle down, have a good quality of live send the kids to schools etc.......but you need to earn your money overseas first! (Also keep it mostly off-shore away from the ATO).

Anyway, I will keep my eye on the Melbourne property market, it looks like prices have 'gone soft' recently. I can only imagine a large correction is heading downunder soon judging by all the debts everyone is hauling around their necks.

I don't plan to locate to Oz for 5 years yet, by then the bubble will be all over and hopefully there will be some bargains and a nice home to live in for the family......which is what property should be all about, not some cheap ATM.

Best wish for the New Year to all.

Not enough water. Desalination is very expensive and currently unnecessary, although water restrictions are in force in lots of the country.

laurejon, 10/10 for effort!

Plenty of water in Australia - read this article http://www.guardian.co.uk/elsewhere/journa...1346106,00.html

Australia's Geographic position places it firmly as a preffered supplier to the emerging economies of the east.

Historically Australia has been economically isolated, however this is rapidly changing with Australia having spent many years building up relationships with China and the many other previously untapped markets.

I cannot think of a better start in life for a young family to move to a new country that takes Health and Happiness so seriously. Australia is a fantastic place to bring up children, they can actually play outside which is not the case in the UK.

The country is so vast it will take a lifetime to explore it to the full.

The downside is its isolation to the West and the two days it takes to get back to the UK to visit Family however that is a small price to pay for such a laid back easy going lifestyle.

Australia and the US' free trade agreement just came into force. IMHO this is VERY bad for australia. All the media focus has been on how much cheaper our imports will be. They speak as if it is a good thing. Every time we buy an imported US item we send money oversea's. Not a good thing. Anyhow Bourbon hasn't dropped like they promised it would x2

Sorry Laurajon but on your second point regarding us taking our health and happiness seriously.... not the case anymore.

I refer you to this article

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/commo...%5E7583,00.html

"NOT many people come back from their Christmas holidays determined to work harder, spend less time with their family and give up a hobby or sport during the coming year. But that is exactly what Australians have been doing during the past two decades. Australians now work the longest hours and have some of the shortest annual holidays in the developed world."

I guess it brings to mind the saying about the grass being greener.....

Regarding allowing kids to play outside.... I am sad to inform you that here we have child abductions as well. Attempted abductions seem like a monthly occurance in Brisbane. It is obscene but it seems no-one in authority has the intestinal fortitude to do anything about it.

Anyhow I am sure that there are plenty of opportunities where ever you look.

Anyhow....

I think I am right is saying that Australia has a trade surplus.

Something unknown in the West, and although the UK government dont think a historic trade deficit is something to worry about most normal right thinking people can grasp the basic understanding that being in debt to the world is not ideal and someone someday will have to pay it all back. We all know how easy it is to spend and how much harder it is to repay it.

Australia has a trade agreement with the US that works both ways. Australia is not daft they have ensured that their trade balances and I think we will find that the trade with the US will balance with the huge Uranium exports to the US.

In addition and something overlooked Australia as an isolated and sparcely populated nation does require national security and that cannot be provided from within. We all know of the problems with Indonesia and and various other neighbours and with such a vast coastline an limited numbers of troops Australia provides an ideal target to some individuals who may like to cause problems.

The US relationship although not ideal with Gung Ho bush at the helm does provide Australia with a security that is unrivalled elsewhere. A hit in Australia would invoke the full weight of the US and many other nations coming to help.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3124387a6026,00.html

qoute "The monthly trade balance of goods and services showed a seasonally adjusted deficit of $A2.24 billion ($NZ2.5 billion) compared with a forecast $A1.9 billion shortfall and a revised $A2 billion gap in September.

Imports were unchanged in the month, while exports fell two per cent,"

Regarding Australia being sparsely populated. I have read an article that stated that there is a town that is not under Australian control, has many non-australian residents, does not pay tax, is not connected to any electricity grid somewhere in NOrth maybe north west australia. Have read a police report about an attempted arrest at an airfield in central australia where the police beat a very hasty retreat when they came under fire from automatic weapons and grenades. I have spoken to nurses who, at a remote hospital, held out against a siege from rioting local population for three days before police arrived. All denied by public officials all veriafiable through various records. At riot the nurses put the police in for bravery awards to get it recognised but it was knocked back (read the letter). So sparsely populated cuts both ways.

Regarding Australia defence. The top 10% australia produces I believe 90% of our exports. Sydney, Melbourne Canberra etc are leaches living the high life off the true workers. I am not sure of current defence policy but our previous White Paper on the defence of Australia called for the retreat of all forces to Newcastle in NSW. They were willing to sacrifice us Queenslanders and Territorians to the "orangelanders" (Australian Army Enemy in Exercises)

Regarding the US. At the end of the day the United States is interested in the United states. Not Australia, not the UK NO-one. Recall that during the second world war, when the British faced their darkest day in their war with the Hun, The US, your greatest friend, sold you a warship at top dollar. When it arrived you discovered that the US had stripped it of all weapons systems. BTW the British taxpayer is still, this very day, even though you have soldiers in Afghanastan and Iraq, You are still paying back the debts from WWII. If I were in charge it would be "geeze George, love to help you, but we can't, you see we can't afford to. Forgive all debts from previous wars and we are in".

I say it again. And not accusingly. The US govt motto is "what's in it for us". Don't blame them. After all is that not what America is all about?

GCS15

ps I am not anti-american

I agree with what you say about the US but is it not the case of better the devil you know.

I would expect every country in the world to put itself and its people first. That is the cornerstone of democracy. When the people become unrepresented as is the case in the UK then that is when problems set in as most people will decide that if they cannot get changes through the ballot box alternative measures are required.

New Labour just dont get the idea that they are there for us because of us, and not the other way around. Totalitarian politics is a dangerous course and history has shown that at each and every attempt these people have led a bloody path and miserable path however they have been overcome.

This is turning into a very interesting debate, see how high House Prices lead to such issues eh?

Australia could never defend itself, the army is way too small, the airforce has too few aircraft and the navy has got only a handful of 'doubtful' Colins Class submarines and a few surface vessels to guard a very long coast line.

Having said that, no one these days serious expects a massed invasion from the north! It is just not going to hapen, its more likely there would be refugees flooding in from Indonesia than troops.

Still, in the very unlikely event of any sort of military attach Australian Defence Forces would only have to 'hold the fort' for a couple of days and wait for the inevitable arrival of US Forces. There is no way the US would leave Oz to look after itself.......I'm sure you know about the treaty?

Anyway, Oz is a very nice country, damaged by high taxes and low wages......and desite the child abuductions, (which are certainly on the increase), Oz still remains a bloody country to live in, (although its not perfect by any means).

Cheers.

Last time I saw a report on Australia's ability to defend herself we had enough munitions for our airforce to last 2 hours. Nice. Can't imagine that things have improved since then

Australia could never defend itself single handed.

Total inhabitants 20 Million and those available for military service probably around 3 Million at a push. Contrast that with China, or Indonesia with populations in the hundreds of millions and its a non starter.

The saving grace for Australia is that it has what the West and in particular the US wants. For this fact, Australia is not short of friends and many would rush to the rescue.

Earlier comments regarding child abductions are true, but then this seems to be widespread amongst societies we should be asking ourselves why this is happening more than was the case in the past.

Could it be the breakdown of family values and the enourmous number of single people are contributing to this epidemic of criminal activity.

You mean the Hutt River Province I assume. See their website for their history- http://www.huttriver.net/

Their existence should not be used as an argument for or against the population level of Australia.

Im not too sure where this perception of such a great country comes from. I lived in Australia for a short time, hated the place and returned home.

They have the same social problems as the UK. There are paeodophiles (have i spelt it right?) there, there are drug addicts, there are "chavs", although they are called "hoons"!

House prices are high compared to wages and it's extremely hard to get a job when you haven't worked in Australia previously or know people.

This is just my opinion, i was based in Perth. Sure, the weather is nice, the flies are a nightmare though.

It's for some people, but not for everyone. Over 50% of emigrants return to the UK in the first 2 years.

I too lived in Oz.

From my experience everyone is given a fair go, if you are reliable and loyal then you are welcomed into the fold. Aussies have a great respect for hard workers and those who put in the extra mile.

"and thats the way it ought to be"

Sydney is gorgeous however there are bad parts as is the case in any large city. On the whole the lifestyle is most certainly cheaper and just a little bit of sunshine when you wake up in the morning is certainly a good way to start the day.

Its not for everyone as you quite rightly say but then maybe that is a good thing.

I would agree with you.

However, it's getting that chance to work. I applied for the most junior positions and the most lowest paid (in all sorts of things) and never even got an interview. I eventually got a job, only through a friend of a friend. Maybe it's just Perth, I have heard many people say Perth is a lot different to "over east".

Maybe i will try "over east" one day....

Anyway, we're getting off the topic.

All the bet

Maynard