Local contractor secures $44m contract to upgrade Plenty Highway NT

Local Northern Territory business Aldebaran Contracting has been awarded a contract worth over $44 million by the Territory Government to upgrade and seal a 27-kilometre section of the Plenty Highway in Central Australia. 

The Plenty Highway is one of the seven interconnecting roads that make up The Outback Way – also known as Australia’s longest shortcut. The Outback Way is a key tourism route that cuts through the middle of Australia from Queensland through to Alice Springs in the Northern Territory and finishing in Western Australia. 

The upgrades to Plenty Highway are jointly funded by the Northern Territory and Australian Governments. The project was designed to improve safety along this route while also providing greater access and benefits to remote communities as well as the tourism, mining and freight sectors. 

“My Government and team is focussed on sealing Territory roads. The more roads sealed the more business can flourish. 

“This Government has invested heavily in job-creating infrastructure, stimulus programs and turbocharging tourism – backing Territory businesses – making sure that local working opportunities come first,” Chief Minister Eva Lawler said. 

This project will include building concrete causeways at the crossings of the Plenty and Marshall rivers and Bonya Creek while the intersections to Bonya community and the Jervois Station Roadhouse will be formalised, upgraded and sealed. 

Other works to be carried out include the relocation and realignment of the Lucy Creek mine intersection to help improve sight distance and address safety concerns in the area. 

This Plenty Highway upgrade is expected to support 62 jobs, including 15 Indigenous employees and 14 apprentices. 

Works will begin in late July 2024 and be completed by December 2025. 

“This multi-million-dollar project on the Plenty Highway in Central Australia will improve road safety and reduce travel time for Territorians, drive visitors and all motorists that use this key route. 

“With the majority of the unsealed section of the Highway below natural surface level, heavy rains can cause road closures and heavy vehicle restrictions, which is why we will continue to progress the sealing of this key Highway. 

“This is another major infrastructure project for the Territory that will provide skills, training and employment opportunities for Territorians,” Minister for Infrastructure, Planning and Logistics Joel Bowden said. 

Source: Northern Territory Government Newsroom; Roads & Infrastructure Australia; Trailer Magazine