Two new high-tech pump stations, to be delivered at Nyngan and Hermidale, will improve Cobar’s water reliability. These stations will ensure that water is pumped more efficiently to the town.
The $45.5 million infrastructure project contract has been awarded to Diona, a construction company. Work will begin in early 2025, and 20 jobs will be created in Western NSW.
“In a country like Australia, there are things that most of us take for granted. We expect when we turn the tap on at home, safe drinking water will come out,” Federal Minister for the Environment and Water, Tanya Plibersek, said.
“But for more than 600,000 people in regional and remote Australia that isn’t the case.
“We have to do better and it’s why the Australian Government is investing billions of dollars in projects like this across the country to ensure communities have access to safe and reliable water.”
These pump stations are being delivered with funding from the Australian and NSW Governments.
“We are getting on with the job of improving water reliability for more than 4,000 residents in Cobar along with the businesses and industries that drive the local economy,” New South Wales Minister for Water, Rose Jackson, said.
“This is one of the biggest investments in new water infrastructure in this corner of regional NSW and will ensure water is being pumped faster and more effectively along the pipeline from Nyngan to Cobar.
“Awarding the contract means that work is now on track to begin in early 2025, which is great news for the community who have been waiting a long time for this project to begin.”
The project is a priority because the current pump stations are aging and at risk of failing, which could interrupt the water supply and cause major impacts on residents, businesses and the local mining industry.
Building facilities fit for the 21st century will significantly improve the efficiency and transfer of water as it travels from the Nyngan weir pool to Cobar along an existing 138-kilometre pipeline.
“It has been many years in the making, but this is a great example of Cobar Shire Council working collaboratively with the Australian and NSW Governments to deliver new water infrastructure that will support residents, businesses and the mining industry for many generations,” Mayor of Cobar, Jarrod Marsden, said.
“We have been advocating strongly for new pump stations because the current ones are past their use-by date, so I am pleased to see the project is picking up momentum with contractors now in place.
“Cobar knows better than most that access to reliable water is essential, particularly when you live in a town 138 kilometres from the nearest water source which is why this new infrastructure will be a game changer.”
Every town in NSW deserves access to safe and reliable water services, so the Australian and NSW Governments have been working closely with Cobar and Bogan Shire Councils and the Cobar Water Board over the past two years to get the project over the line.
Since the beginning of 2023, the Department held 30 meetings with these stakeholders, along with two community drop-in sessions and four dedicated First Nations events.
Construction on the pump stations is expected to be complete by mid-2026.
