The former operator of Royal Darwin Hospital’s hyperbaric chamber has sent a letter to the NT government seeking $53,000 in entitlements he says were not paid by Hyperbaric Health, the previous contractor, a company run by the husband of the current operator.

The Mines and Energy Department said Empire Energy’s gas well that was the subject of a legal briefing to the environment minister recommending prosecution or potential prosecution for breaches was built in compliance with regulations but the department won’t say exactly what was alleged to have occurred or how the situation went from legal advice to a minister to a finding that regulations were not breached.

A government briefing recommending potential prosecution against Empire Energy for breaching the company’s environmental management plan concerning a gas well in the Beetaloo Basin was suddenly dropped, the Environment Department’s chief executive has said, after an unnamed person in the Mining and Energy Department decided there was no breach of the Petroleum Act.

A trade delegation led by Asian Relations Minister Robyn Cahill will explore bilateral trade and investment opportunities in Malaysia, coinciding with the launch of AirAsia Malaysia’s new non-stop Kuala Lumpur-Darwin route on Friday.

The Finocchiaro CLP Government is looking to fill a new role called the “Territory Procurement Champion” who will replace the Buy Local Industry Advocate, ahead of undisclosed planned reforms to government procurement processes to be rolled out later this year.

The Northern Territory has the lowest renewable energy production of any Australian state or territory, according to a new national report, that follows the CLP Government’s decision to scrap its promised 2030 renewable energy target.

A senior government executive who told Parliament’s Budget Estimates Committee she was not involved in recommending the Environment Minister approve the controversial Mataranka water allocation plan due to a conflict of interest, was forced to change her story when an internal document signed by her was presented that showed she was involved, with other questionable conflicts of interest raised.

A mysterious warning that new direct flights between Darwin and Kuala Lumpur with AirAsia are subject to “gaining government approval” is not a result of NT Government regulations, the CLP Government has said.

Disgraced senior bureaucrat Andrew Kirkman is still on the government payroll nearly two months after departing his chief executive position, the CLP revealed at Budget Estimates hearings, but how and why remains a mystery.