Local economic development group MITEZ says recent developments paint an optimistic picture for the region's future.
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Mount Isa to Townsville Economic Zone president David Glasson said that despite the difficult start to 2019 with unprecedented flooding across the region, the snapshot of projects likely to occur across the corridor over the coming years was encouraging.
"Over the past ten years, MITEZ has worked to assist local governments and industry partners to advance a variety of project ideas by facilitating feasibility and preliminary business case studies to assist in getting projects up and running," Mr Glasson said.
"The time lag from initial concept investigation to detailed planning to the eventual project completion can take ten years or more and over the past few months a number of projects that have been in the mix for some time have advanced significantly after a lot of effort and determination by the project proponents and Councils."
Mr Glasson said one example was the signing of a structured and detailed Deed arrangement with Chinese investor, CNVM Investment Pty Ltd to develop a meat processing facility and feedlot at Hughenden.
"That follows years of effort by Flinders Shire Council after studies conducted for MITEZ in 2012 evaluating the commercial viability of a meat processing facility for North West Queensland," he said.
Mr Glasson said other projects now well advanced included irrigated agriculture and cropping areas in the Richmond, Flinders and McKinlay Shires which benefited from earlier MITEZ investigations.
"Last week the Queensland Government's Coordinator- General give the green light to Hughenden's 15 Mile Agricultural Development by approving the $47 million project that is expected to provide 170 direct jobs at Hughenden," he said.
"Other studies include the Transport and Logistics Hub for Mount Isa, a Rail Load-out facility and a new water storage at Cloncurry with these projects currently in the project pipeline advancing to the next stage."
Mr Glasson said the proposed $1 billion CopperString 2.0 high voltage transmission line would also pave the way for renewable energy projects and possibly enable new industries to establish along the MITEZ corridor.
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Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
