THE Northern Territory Government has awarded the tender for a scoping study on a railway line from Tennant Creek to Mount Isa.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The tender was awarded to Port Jackson Partners.
Northern Territory Chief Minister Adam Giles said the study would examine economic opportunities on a proposed 600 kilometre railway line.
It could open up new mining projects in Queensland’s North West Region.
“Preliminary investigations suggest a number of mining companies in the Mount Isa area could be interested in exporting through the Port of Darwin instead of Townsville,” Mr Giles said.
Mr Giles said it would be cheaper for North West Queensland to export from Darwin if the rail link was built and would save “days in shipping time”.
The scoping study was expected to be returned to the Northern Territory Government in November.
“Inadequate economic infrastructure is a significant barrier to the development of Northern Australia so it is vital that a project like this is given every consideration,” Mr Giles said.
