Senator the Hon Mathias Cormann

WSA Co will today release to market the Registration Of Interest (ROI) for early stage earthworks on the Western Sydney Airport site.

This is a vital step towards meeting the Turnbull Government’s commitment that early stage earthworks will commence on the site before the end of 2018.

The ROI for early earthworks includes movement of 1.8 million cubic metres of earth in the north-eastern part of the airport site.

These initial earthworks are a component of the total bulk earthworks required, with around 22 million cubic metres of earth to be moved and redistributed on the site throughout construction.

Following this ROI, a request for tender will be released and the contract awarded in the coming months. Further tenders, including for the main bulk earthworks, will be released early next year.

Early earthworks will commence next year, and extensive activity is underway to prepare the airport site for these early earthworks.

This is another in a series of milestones reached on the Western Sydney Airport project since the Turnbull Government announced the formal approval of the Airport Plan one year ago, on 12 December 2016.

Over the last year, these milestones have included:

• Issuing a Notice of Intention to Sydney Airport, resulting in it announcing it would not build Sydney’s second airport.
• Establishing the Forum On Western Sydney Airport, a key community consultation mechanism for the airport’s development, chaired by Professor Peter Shergold. 
• The announcement in the May 2017 budget that the Turnbull Government would commit up to $5.3 billion as an equity investment in a company to build and own Western Sydney Airport.
• The establishment in August 2017 of WSA Co, the government-owned company that will build and own Western Sydney Airport.
• Completing the appointment of all seven directors to the board of WSA Co.
• WSA Co opening its offices in Liverpool.
• WSA Co going to market in several procurement processes, including for geotechnical survey work on the site.

The Turnbull Government is on track to deliver a world-class airport by 2026 that Western Sydney can be proud of.