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In this edition Virtual Events Update Registrations of Interest called for Renewable Energy Zone in Central-West NSW Productivity Commission kicks off second inquiry into National Water Reform NSW and Victorian governments continue fast-tracking planning approvals NSW Minister for Customer Service provides an exclusive briefing Industry News Appointments Virtual Policy Taskforces and Events

Virtual Events Update

This week, Infrastructure Partnerships Australia refreshed its virtual events program to focus on quality, over quantity and delivering you the best events, with the right speakers, at the right time.

As part of the refresh, the weekly webinar slot on Thursday mornings will now move to a more dynamic model to provide the best and most timely content. Over the coming weeks you’ll see a range of sector leaders on our events platform, including Gladys Berejiklian, Premier of , Ben Wyatt MP, Treasurer of Western Australia, and Tim Reardon, Secretary, NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet, among others. That means you can be confident an invite to an Infrastructure Partnerships Australia virtual event will be worth making time for.

We led the delivery of live and interactive virtual events and we’ll continue to innovate and evolve our service offering to keep you connected with the sector through the COVID-19 crisis and beyond. BACK TO TOP ENERGY Registrations of Interest called for Renewable Energy Zone in Central-West NSW The NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) has requested Registrations of Interest (ROIs) for the state’s first pilot Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) in the Central- West region. The Government is calling for proponents of potential renewable energy and energy storage projects in the region to provide an indication of the scale, location and types of projects being considered for the REZ. Information gathered through the ROI process will help to determine the technical

Source: Shutterstock design, planning and further market engagement to guide development of the REZ. Through the Central-West REZ, the NSW Government hopes to unlock up to 3,000 megawatts of new generation by the mid-2020s. ROIs are open for two weeks and close on 5 June. Construction of projects in the Central- West REZ are expected to commence in 2022.

This follows the announcement in late January of a bilateral energy deal between the Federal Government and NSW Government. That Memorandum of Understanding included a commitment by both the governments to progress the Central-West REZ and provide support to upgrade critical transmission infrastructure, including Humelink, Project EnergyConnect, VNI West, and QNI.

WATER Productivity Commission kicks off second inquiry into National Water Reform This week, the Productivity Commission (PC) launched a new National Water Reform inquiry, releasing its Terms of Reference and Issues Paper. This is the PC’s second triennial review of the national water sector, with the last one conducted in 2017. This Inquiry tracks progress of Australian governments and the sector towards objectives established in the 2004 National Water Initiative (NWI). The Inquiry will also explore whether reforms agreed to in the NWI are still relevant and consider how

Source: Shutterstock to address challenges such as climate change. Jane Doolan, who led the 2017 Inquiry has been re-appointed to lead this Inquiry. Dr Doolan is also Deputy Chair of Western Water, a utility in . The PC is calling for submissions to the Issues Paper by Friday 21 August.

A submission to the 2017 Inquiry by Infrastructure Partnerships Australia, as well as a submission by the Water Services Association of Australia and a report by Infrastructure Australia, all called for the PC to set out the need for a new National Water Initiative, among a number of other measures, to bring about much-overdue urban water reforms. However, the 2017 inquiry failed to bring about any meaningful reforms to urban water. Instead, a recommendation to ‘renew’ the NWI through incremental change is still the subject of discussion between the Federal Government and the states and territories.

Infrastructure Partnerships Australia will urge the Commission to address the major challenges facing the sector, which have only intensified since 2017, and outline an ambitious and actionable reform agenda for urban water through this Inquiry.

PLANNING NSW and Victorian governments continue fast-tracking planning approvals The New South Wales and Victorian Governments have announced a range of projects to be fast-tracked through planning processes across energy, education, public housing, justice and health infrastructure, as part of their response to the economic impacts of COVID-19. Late last week, the NSW Government announced a second tranche of projects to be fast- tracked through approvals processes as part of the Planning System Acceleration Program. These 24 projects have an

Source: Shutterstock estimated total cost of $5.4 billion, and include the new Sydney Fish Market and New Tweed Valley Hospital. The NSW Government has committed to make planning decisions on these projects by 18 June. These add to the first tranche of 24 projects announced by the NSW Government in late April, which have now all had their approvals finalised. Also this week, the Victorian Government announced that it had approved $1.2 billion of building and development projects, including a new $290 million headquarters for the Australian Federal Police in Melbourne. These approvals were fast-tracked through the Building Victoria’s Recovery Taskforce, which was established last month to identify and accelerate priority projects.

These measures to streamline planning processes and mobilise investment in smaller capital projects are aligned with Infrastructure Partnerships Australia’s advice to governments in mid-April. These actions add to earlier announcements to shore confidence in the sector, maintain construction, and ensure the pipeline of existing projects could continue to be delivered. Infrastructure Partnerships Australia will continue to work closely with governments and industry to support the ongoing stimulus and economic recovery efforts.

EVENTS NSW Minister for Customer Service provides an exclusive briefing

In the most recent instalment of Infrastructure Partnerships Australia’s Infrastructure to the Point virtual event series, the New South Wales Minister for Customer Service, Victor Dominello, provided an exclusive briefing on his government’s response to COVID-19. He reflected on the dramatic shift in decision-making processes by Ministers and senior public servants in the NSW Government in response to the current crisis. Minister Dominello outlined the importance of data and analysis in ensuring decisions could be made quickly and Source: Infrastructure Partnerships Australia effectively, and how his Department’s clear focus on customer service has helped to guide the NSW Government’s response efforts and ensure residents received joined-up service delivery.

The next Infrastructure to the Point event is scheduled for 4 June, when Western Australia’s Minister for Transport and Planning Rita Saffioti will provide a briefing on her Government’s response to COVID-19. The series will continue throughout June, with details of further sessions with high-profile leaders to be revealed over the coming weeks.

Key takeaways from the webinar session with Minister Dominello are summarised below.

Industry News

WaterNSW have awarded WaterSecure, a joint venture between Aurecon and KBR, a Portfolio Delivery Management contract to oversee previously announced water infrastructure projects to be jointly funded by the NSW and Federal Governments. Under the seven-year contract, WaterSecure will manage projects including the Upper Mole River Dam, Dungowan Dam Replacement, and Upgrade.

The Government of Western Australia is calling for bids to design and construct the Leach Highway and Welshpool Road Interchange Project through an Alliance contract. The project has a budget allocation of $93 million and is due to commence construction in late 2020. Bids close 3 July and can be made here.

KiwiRail has issued a Request for Proposals for a preferred shipyard to build two new ferries for the Interislander Ferry route. The RFP follows the completion of the Request for Information Stage in February. The project recently received a NZ$400 million (AUD $374.5 million) allocation in the New Zealand Government’s 2020-21 Budget. A decision on the shipyard is due before the end of 2020.

The NSW Government is calling for Registrations of Interest to finalise designs and environmental assessments for the Medlow Bath section of the Great Western Highway Upgrade Program. The project involves the upgrade of an existing 1.2 kilometres two-lane, two-way section of road on the Great Western Highway. Tenders close 5 June, with more details available here.

The Australian Energy Market Commission is calling for submissions on the Australian Energy Regulator’s proposal to allow electricity retailers to defer payment of network charges for up to six months in cases where customers are experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19 during the second half of 2020. Submissions can be made here and are due by 25 June. The AEMC expects to publish a final determination by 23 July.

The Australian Energy Regulator is seeking written submissions on their discussion paper on the regulatory treatment of inflation. A draft position from the review is expected to be reached by September, with a final position due by the end of the year. Submissions are due by 15 July and should be emailed here.

The Federal Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources has released updated statistics on Australia’s . Fossil fuels contributed 79 per cent of total electricity generation in 2019, down from 81 per cent in 2018. Renewables contributed 21 per cent, with solar generation growing by 46 per cent over the previous year. A breakdown of the estimates can be found here.

Hazer Group has executed a binding Gas Supply Agreement and Collaboration Deed with the Western Australian Water Corporation for the supply of biogas and co-location of a hydrogen production plant with the Woodman Point Wastewater Treatment Plant. Under the three-year agreement, the facility will use sewage as a feedstock to produce 100 tonnes of fuel-grade hydrogen and 380 tonnes of graphite each year, with the potential for future expansion.

Tunnelling on further sections of Melbourne’s Metro Tunnel has commenced. One Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) has been relaunched towards Parkville, while another has begun drilling from the site of the new Anzac Station to the Metro Tunnel’s eastern entrance in South Yarra.

Palisade Investment Partners have signed a Memorandum of Understanding as part of a consortium to establish the H20zBus Project. The consortium comprises Transit Systems, Ballard Power Systems, BOC Limited, Palisade Investment Partners, and ITM Power. As part of a concept development phase, the consortium will investigate the deployment of an initial 100 hydrogen fuel cell electric buses in 10 central hub locations across Australia.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency has extended the timeline for submissions to its Bioenergy Roadmap. Submissions now close on 10 June and can be made here.

AECOM have released their third annual global infrastructure report, The future of infrastructure: Creating opportunity for everyone. The report includes a series of articles examining the role of infrastructure in supporting economic recovery from COVID-19, as well as broader commentary on infrastructure finance, resilience, and business cases, among other topics.

BACK TO TOP

Appointments

The Northern Territory Government has announced the formation of the Territory Economic Reconstruction Commission, alongside the appointment of Dale Wakefield as Minister for Central Australian Reconstruction. Andrew Liveris and Paul Henderson will co-chair the Commission, with Martin Parkinson AC, Romilly Madew AO, Gail Kelly, Eytan Lenko, Professor Mick Dodson, and Gary Higgins appointed as members.

Simon York has been appointed Senior Adviser, Financial Services at L.E.K. Consulting. Mr York was previously an Executive Director at Macquarie Group.

Shaun Mooney has been appointed Executive General Manager, Commercial at the Port of Melbourne, effective 20 July. Mr Mooney is currently the General Manager of Commercial Projects at Linfox.

Leeanne Bond has been appointed as a Non-Executive Director to the Aurecon group board. Ms Bond is a professional company director specialising in energy, resources, infrastructure, and governance of major capital projects. Mark Gobbie has been appointed Independent Chair of Water Research Australia, effective 28 October for a three-year term. Mr Gobbie is General Manager, Asset Operations and Delivery at SA Water.

BACK TO TOP

Virtual Policy Taskforces and Events

Infrastructure to the Point with The Hon. Rita Saffioti MLA, Minister for Transport and Planning, Western Australia Live & interactive event series

Date: Thursday, 4 June 2020

Time: 2:30pm – 3.30pm AEST 12:30pm - 1:30pm AWST

Location: Virtual event

Infrastructure to the Point with The Hon. Ben Wyatt MLA, Treasurer of Western Australia Live & interactive event series

Date: Thursday, 11 June 2020

Time: 12:00pm – 12:40pm AEST 10:00am - 10:40am AWST

Location: Virtual event

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