PPP Conference

The AECgroup is hosting the Public Private Partnerships (PPP) Conference on the 26th of March 2002 at the Hotel Grand Chancellor, Spring Hill.

As PPPs move steadily into the procurement mainstream the Queensland Government, business and communities alike want to know more about best practice PPPs and the opportunities associated with increasing procurement of public infrastructure and services. Delegates at the conference will hear about the increasing trend towards PPPs with a specific focus on issues concerning Queensland.

The aim of the conference is to explore how public private partnerships can be achieved and to help senior level delegates to: assess which government services can be outsourced to the private sector, understand the demands of PPPs, choose the most appropriate structure, develop skills required to manage PPPs, discover how the pioneers of private sector cooperation in the UK and in Victoria are managing partnerships, exploring new forms of cooperation and gain knowledge on how to make these partnerships run more smoothly and effectively.

For the partnership to work each party must recognise the objectives of the other and be prepared to build a good, long-term relationship.

A major feature of this conference is the calibre of speakers that have will present at this premier event. These include:

• Kerry Herron, Chair, Queensland Advisory Committee, CEDA & Chairman, Herron Todd White Australia
• John O'Rourke, Managing Director Infrastructure Capital, ABN AMRO Australia Limited
• Paul Thomson, Partner Corporate Finance, KPMG
• Peter Carroll, Author, "The Growth of Public Private Partnerships in Australia"

Organisations wishing to showcase their products and/or services to some of the state's key decision makers should should contact us as soon as possible. This opportunity will be your one chance to undoubtedly deliver your organisation with new business and heightened market awareness for your company.

As every sponsoring organisation has different objectives and needs, everything is negotiable and we will always be open to suggestions you may have concerning a sponsorship package. Maybe you want to raise your organisation's profile by sponsoring a lunch or cocktail reception or simply have an opportunity to display your company's promotional material.

For further information on any of the above, please call Brendan Duffy or Natasha O'Donovan direct on (07) 3831 0577. We look forward to hearing from you.

Economic Futures Victoria

Following the success of last year's event, the AECgroup is proud to announce the Economic Futures Victoria 2002 Conference to be held on the 18th of April at the Mercure Hotel in Melbourne. This year's event introduces a new format, giving delegates a compacted and informative view of the economic future of Victoria in one-day.

Over the course of the day, Victoria's economic state of play, updates on current projects and future industry developments for Victoria will all be examined. The conference will also help to identify major opportunities for industry growth throughout Victoria and will discuss how government policies can assist businesses to stay ahead of the competition.

High profile speakers include:

• Dr John Nieuwenhuysen, Chief Executive, Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA)
• Alistair Urquhart, Publisher, Affairs of State
• Barry Vienet, General Manager - Victoria, TMP Worldwide
• Prof Barry Muddle, Head - School of Physics and Materials Engineering, Monash University

Sponsorship opportunities are currently available for this event. Organisations wishing to showcase their products and/or services to some of Victoria's key decision makers should contact us as soon as possible.

The AECgroup realise that every sponsoring organisation has different objectives and needs. Everything is negotiable, and we will always be open to suggestions you may have concerning a sponsorship package. Examples include sponsoring a lunch or cocktail reception or simply have an opportunity to display your company's promotional material.

For further information, please call Brendan Duffy or Natasha O'Donovan direct on (07) 3831 0577. We look forward to hearing from you.

Economic Futures Queensland 2001 Conference

The Economic Futures Queensland Conference was staged at the Hotel Grand Chancellor on the 5th of December, drawing private industry and government representatives from around the State.

The aim of the event was to help identify the state of play and major opportunities for industry growth throughout Queensland. Industry sectors examined throughout the day included tourism, property, construction, recruitment, mining and biotechnology.

The conference featured many keynote speakers including: Ross Rolfe, Queensland Department of State Development; Dr Doug McTaggart, Queensland Investment Corporation; Dr Christine Williams, Queensland Treasury; Tim Netscher, BHP Billiton Nickel; David Reynolds, TMP Worldwide; Dr Peter Crossman, Department of Innovation and Information Economy, Sport and Recreation; and Daniel Gschwind, Queensland Tourism Industry Corporation.

Topics addressed included:

• The Australian Economic Outlook;
• Queensland's current state of play and its future direction;
• The States' commercial and industrial property outlook;
• Trends in the labour force of the future;
• Australia's investment in biotechnology;
• Innovation and government policy;
• How Public Private Partnerships are going to stimulate private investment in infrastructure; and
• An up-to-the minute update on major projects for Queensland including the BHP Billiton Nickel - QNI Yabulu Extension Project.

AECgroup Chief Executive Officer, Simon Smith said "the event gave an insight into the future of the State through a variety of public and private sources."

"Delegates received an informative and compacted view of the Economic Future of Queensland in a one day format."

Speaker Nigel Stapledon, Westpac Banking Corporation, said not to be discouraged by the recent demise of Ansett or the War on America and that a modest recovery is expected for the year ahead.

For further information on how to obtain conference papers, please contact AECconferencing on (07) 3831 0577.