The Northern Water Supply Project is a proposed desalination project that will supply water to the far north and Upper Spencer Gulf areas of South Australia. The proposed scope of the works includes:
- a seawater desalination plant (up to 260 Megalitres/day) in the Upper Spencer Gulf
- a 600-kilometre water pipeline to the far north of South Australia. The pipeline will link Eastern Eyre Peninsula, Whyalla, Port Augusta, Woomera, Carapateena, Roxby Downs, Pimba, and Olympic Dam
- water storage and pumping stations, and
- other ancillary infrastructure.
The desalination plant is expected to be constructed in two stages, each with a capacity of around 130 ML per day. The plant will intake water from the Spencer Gulf and use reverse osmosis to desalinate the water.
Key Dates
| 2023 | Expected Funding Decision |
| Nov 2023 | ROIs Open |
| Dec 2023 | ROIs Close |
| 2026 | Expected Construction Commencement |
| 2026 | Expected Construction Completion |
Funding contributions
| Federal Government | |
| SA Government | |
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The project was allocated $78 million for FY2024-25 for its feasibility assessment, being jointly funded by the Federal and SA Governments and industry. |
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Procurement
| Procuring Agency: | South Australian Department of Energy and Mining |
| Procurement note: | Under the Design, Build, Operate, and Maintain contract, the successful party is expected to be awarded two separate contracts: a Design and Construct contract between 2025 to 2030 and an Operation and Maintenance Contract from 2028 to 2048. The contracts are being tendered concurrently and are to be submitted as a joint proposal. The successful bidding consortium will be required to consider both construction costs, and operations and maintenance costs. |
| Related contracts: |
PROJECT HISTORY
| Mar 2022 | Environmental investigations began for site selection. |
| Nov 2023 | Infrastructure SA commenced a Registration of Interest process to design, build, operate and maintain the project, closing 11 December 2023. |
| Mar 2024 | The SA Government appointed GHD as Technical Advisor for the Project. |
| Jun 2024 | The 2024-25 SA Budget allocated $78 million for FY2024-25 for the project's feasibility assessment, being jointly funded by the Federal and SA Governments and industry. It also announced an estimated completion date of June 2026. |
| Jan 2025 | The SA Government commenced an Expressions of Interest process for a Transaction Advisory Services Provider for the Northern Water Project, closing on 30 January. The proponent would be required to facilitate and manage the procurement of the project, to be delivered as an Incentivised Target Cost contract model. |
| Jun 2025 | The 2025-26 South Australian Budget includes $58 million in FY2025-26 for pre-delivery, procurement and commercial development for the project. The planning works have a combined total cost of $220 million and are expected to be complete in Q4 2026. The Budget confirms that the project’s commercial management has been moved from Infrastructure South Australia to the Department of Energy and Mining. |
