A new 10-year Tasmanian Infrastructure Pipeline will give industry “certainty” moving forward, Infrastructure Minister Jeremy Rockliff says.
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The $13.9 billion pipeline collates 247 “vital” Tasmanian infrastructure projects, valued at $5 million or more, and will be updated each year.
Mr Rockliff announced the pipeline following an infrastructure roundtable in Launceston on Friday.
It comes in the wake of the 2018-19 state budget, the centrepiece of which was a $2.6 billion infrastructure spend over the next four years.
The pipeline was developed by Infrastructure Tasmania and covers roads, rail, energy, water and sewerage, airports, communications, public housing, schools, hospitals, prisons and more.
Mr Rockliff said a 30-year Tasmanian Infrastructure Strategy would be detailed by the end of the year.
With infrastructure spending projected to exceed $1.5 billion in 2018-19 alone, Mr Rockliff said it was important that a long-term infrastructure vision was outlined.
This gives industry certainty moving forward.
- Infrastructure Minister Jeremy Rockliff
“This gives industry certainty moving forward, that we have key projects to deliver, both public and private,” he said.
”We’ve just had a very constructive discussion, a roundtable … with industry and those within the training sector, such as TasTAFE, the University of Tasmania and Skills Tasmania, so we can have the jobs to construct and build the many projects in that 10-year pipeline.”
Infrastructure Tasmania chief executive Allan Garcia said the organisation was “excited” by the pipeline.
“We’re confident that industry can now make decisions about its workforce, it can make decisions about the skills it’s going to require to deliver our pipeline,” he said.
“I think we’ve got an exciting period where unprecedented levels of infrastructure are being provided in the state.
“And that’s supported also by the private sector.”
Mr Garcia said industry would now have the opportunity to respond to the release of the pipeline.
“I think before [industry] has worked from budget to budget,” he said.
“What industry’s [now] getting a look at is the broad spectrum of public activity that’s in place at the present time, a never seen before pipeline of projects that they can then make judgments about in terms of the investments they need and the skills they require to meet that challenge.”
Labor infrastructure spokesman David O’Byrne welcomed the announcement, but not without some criticism of the government.
“Labor supports the announcement that the Liberals will finally add some rigour around their infrastructure plans,” he said.
“Some of the projects included an underground Hobart bus mall, which the minister now says may actually be above ground.
“He also promised [to add] a fifth lane to Hobart’s Southern Outlet, which he says he thinks might cost $35 million, but is unsure on the design or purpose of the lane.”
Mr O’Byrne said the Liberals’ infrastructure commitments made during the 2018 state election campaign were “bizarre and not properly costed”.