Strong interest in Royalties program from councils

Queensland councils hoping to share in $60 million worth of funding from the State Government’s Royalties for the Regions (R4R) program have lodged 71 expressions of interest (EOIs).

Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning Jeff Seeney says all, but one, of the eligible councils had lodged EOIs.

“Royalties for the Regions is about reinvesting a share of royalties in regions to help build new and improved community, road and floodplain security infrastructure,” Mr Seeney said.

“This first round of funding will focus on critical or urgent infrastructure projects that are ‘shovel ready’. I am pleased to see this philosophy is substantially reflected in the EOIs submitted.

“Councils were asked to prioritise projects in their regions as this first pilot round of funding is limited to $60 million.

“We asked councils for clear priorities and rigour in their selection of projects as we anticipated the program would be oversubscribed.

“Unsurprisingly, demand for funding has outstripped available funding.

“Indications are local governments have been working closely with their communities, resource companies and peak bodies to prioritise projects that closely match the community’s needs.

“The Government has finalised assessment of the requested project funding, which totalled almost $260 million.

“Significant contributions have also been leveraged under this first round of EOIs.

“Of the near $260 million sought, EOIs have identified contributions of $53.3 million from industry and $51 million from local government.

“Next week the Government we will announce which EOIs best meet the criteria and can be progressed to a full business case.

“Projects submitted for funding address a broad range of regional community, road and flood mitigation projects—from levees and flood gauges to water and waste treatment facilities.

[ENDS] 1 November 2012

Media Contact: John Wiseman – 0409 791 281