Australian Government Northern Territory water infrastructure announcement

Region: Greater Darwin, Katherine Region, Barkly Region, Central Australia | Topic: Horticulture
Aug 2021

Water infrastructure

Under the Australian Government’s $108 million National Water Grid Connections funding pathway, 40 projects are being funded across Australia to improve water security and reliability.

The cumulative impact for the National Water Grid will be significant. Collectively, these projects are expected to support over 7,000 hectares of irrigable land and connect 400 new customers. An additional 13,000 customers are expected to benefit from improved water access or reliability.

Examples of projects being funded include construction of new off-stream storage dams and water pipelines, plus the construction of recycled water irrigation systems.

Increasing access to reliable water will help agriculture grow towards a $100 billion industry. Investing in the right infrastructure in the right places will support Australian agriculture and primary production in established areas, and help unlock agricultural production in new areas, including Australia’s north.

The Territory will receive more than $7 million from the Australian Government under the Northern Territory Connections package for water infrastructure projects. Other construction partners will also be involved in the projects, which are estimated to cost $41.3 million.

The Katherine Logistics and Agricultural Hub is a key project for the Territory which will receive funding for water infrastructure through this initiate.

The Katherine region has very good prospects for future agribusiness development from traditional beef cattle production, mangoes and melons; to new crops supplying emerging Asian markets such as soybean; and commercialising our own bush foods.

The NT Government is committed to developing Katherine’s regional horticultural and agricultural potential, and also as a logistics hub to strengthen the town’s role as a transport cross ways for Queensland and Western Australia commodities.

The Katherine Logistics and Agribusiness Hub will be a fully operational, multi-disciplined logistics and agribusiness hub to meet the current and future growth needs of Katherine, the Top End region and northern Australia.

To find out more about the Katherine Logistics and Agricultural Hub or the business case head to the following websites:

An additional $2 million in Australian Government funding is also being put towards a detailed business case project to consider the potential for Adelaide River Off-Stream Water Storage and other storage options. A detailed business case should be completed later this year.

Back to NT Rural Review - August 2021