The Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) selected a 50-50 joint venture comprising Acciona and CPB Contractors (ACACPB JV) as the preferred bidder to deliver the Inland Rail Southern Civil Works Programme covering the construction of Narromine – Narrabri railway section. The works are estimated at more than AUD 1.2 billion (USD 867 million).
The joint venture will work with ARTC to review the reference design and to develop the construction plans to start the main works in 2022.
The project covers the construction of a 306 km rail on a greenfield alignment of the Narromine – Narrabri railway section in New South Wales. The line will cross the mid-north western New South Wales and it is Inland Rail’s longest section of track.
The project includes a new single track standard gauge railway with crossing loops, the construction of 58 new bridges and 14 news viaducts ranging from 15 metres to 3,940 metres. The works package also includes 630 culvert banks, new rail connections and possible future connections with existing rail lines, level crossings and road realignments, ancillary infrastructure to support the operation of the proposal and ancillary work and facilities to support the construction of the proposal.
The civil works include bulk earthworks, bridge and viaduct structures, drainage and materials and logistics management.
“Major construction will not start until statutory approvals have been received from the New South Wales and Australian governments, but the appointment of a preferred proponent now tells local businesses to get ‘Inland Rail ready’ and start talking with ACACPB JV about what the future looks like,” ARTC Inland Rail Interim Chief Executive Rebecca Pickering said.
The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Narromine to Narrabri project was on public display from December 2020 to February 2021.
In 2020, the first section of Inland Rail was completed between Parkes and Narromine in the New South Wales, which included the modernisation of 98 km of rail and the construction of a 5.3 km section near Parkes. In the NSW, ARTC awarded a USD 501.8 million contract for the Narrabri-North Star rail project.
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