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QBirt awarded $70 million earthworks contract for Amrun bauxite project

Written by Sophia Rostron | Jan 19, 2017 2:00:00 PM

The Queensland Government has announced that Queensland-based civil engineering company QBirt has won a $70 million bulk earthworks package for work on Rio Tinto's $2.6 billion Amrun Bauxite project on Western Cape York. 

QBirt founder and managing director Quentin Birt said the latest Amrun contract is a positive step to continue QBirt's association with Rio Tinto, after previously winning the contract for 300,000m3 of embankment and seven kilometres of mine haul roads.  

“We pride ourselves on the relationships we generate and this is mirrored by our ongoing re-engagement with Rio Tinto. After the success of our accelerated construction mine haul road network at Weipa, this new Amrun contract only strengthens our long-term relationship with Rio Tinto.”

Image courtesy of Rio Tinto

Earthworks required for the construction of the new project include approximately 40 kilometres of sealed access roads and the haul road network.

QBirt will also develop the mine stockpile zone, tailings and separation ponds and other critical site infrastructure. Construction is expected to generate 150 jobs, commence in the first quarter of 2017 and conclude by the end of 2018.

Once operational, the Amrun project is expected to support the continued employment of the current 1400 strong workforce based in Weipa,  as well as more than 2000 employees based at the Yarwun and Queensland Aluminium Limited refineries in Gladstone that are fed with bauxite from Cape York.

Recent Amrun contract awards include  McConnell Dowell picking up the construction contract for the Amrun Export Facility in July 2016, Civmec securing two contracts totalling $160m of work, and Decmil winning a $50m NPI contract. 

Source: Rio Tinto, Qld Govt