Motorists are now experiencing a safer ride through Port Augusta at the Highway One and Burgoyne Street intersection.

The following main improvements have been made:

An additional lane for traffic heading east through the intersection

A second right turn lane from Caroona Road onto Highway One

A dedicated left turn lane from Caroona Road onto Highway One.

The completed intersection has reduced congestion and improved safety and traffic flow at this location.

Some restrictions may still apply at times until footpaths are completed later this month.

DPTI thanks motorists for their patience during the construction period.

This $2.5 million upgrade was announced as an election commitment last year and is funded by the State Government under the Major Works Program.

BHP Billiton will start spending $1.2 billion on equipment for the Olympic Dam expansion in coming weeks after winning final approvals from Parliament for the deal to proceed.

The head of the company’s uranium operations, Dean Dalla Valle, said the approval paved the way for the $30 billion mine to be South Australia’s economic driver for the next 40 years, but gave no guarantees BHP Billiton’s board would approve the project in 2012.

The indenture approval allows $525 million of the company’s pre-approved funding to be spent in South Australia over the next six months as the company begins purchasing long-lead-time items, such as trucks, and starts site works at Roxby Downs.

Despite resistance from the Greens and more than 30 hours of parliamentary debate, amendments to the Roxby Downs Indenture Act passed with bipartisan support yesterday afternoon.

The indenture outlines conditions for the mine, including royalty rates and environmental conditions, and comes after several years of assessment and negotiation between the Government and BHP.

Premier Jay Weatherill said he was confident the new mine would be approved by the BHP Billiton board, despite weak global conditions.

“We are expecting the decision to be in the middle of next year,” he said. “There is enormous confidence about the project getting the approval – that confidence I think is underscored by the fact that BHP is prepared to spend $1.2 billion on initial works for the project even before that approval has occurred.”

Mr Weatherill said the board had 12 months to approve the project before government approvals lapsed. “It is back to the drawing board … should they not get approval in that period,” he said.

Mr Dalla Valle said the approval was a significant milestone for the project.

“The passage of this Bill provides the company with greater certainty for what would be a significant investment,” he said.

Olympic Dam’s expansion will make it one of the world’s largest open-pit mines, potentially expanding copper production from about 180,000 tonnes a year to 750,000 tonnes a year.