The NSW Government has launched a tender valued at $17 million to undertake the construction of the 742-kilometre extension of the NSW Border Wild Dog Fence with businesses in regional NSW encouraged to apply.
Deputy Premier John Barilaro announced that the tender launch came after construction of the pilot site of the world's longest wild dog fence near Hungerford had now been completed.
"Most of regional NSW is still recovering from COVID, bushfires and the worst drought on record so using local businesses in the bush to build the fence is a top priority for the NSW Government," Mr Barilaro said.
"The construction of this significant project will provide stimulus to regional communities which is great news for local contractors and workers.
"The NSW Government has taken steps to assist regional businesses in the tender process by creating a panel of suppliers who will be able to quote on individual stages of the build.
"The stages of construction will be 50 to 120 kilometres in length, so there will be plenty of opportunity for smaller local suppliers to get involved."
Minister Marshall said the next phase of construction through the tender process would build on the completion of the 15-kilometre-long pilot site near Hungerford, which used local contractors and materials sourced from Bourke.
"The priority pilot site has been an invaluable exercise for the overall project as it has allowed the project team to test and evaluate its systems prior to the main phase of construction commencing," Mr Marshall said.
"Through this process we used local companies, including those employing Indigenous Australian contractors from Enngonia, and all the materials were sourced from a business in Bourke.
"Once the extension is complete the NSW Border Wild Dog Fence will be more than doubled in length to 1,325 km, with the fence fortress to serve as a titanic tool for NSW landholders in the fight against pests and predators."
The total project is costed at around $37.5 million, with all costs associated with the planning, assessments, set-out and construction of the fence to be met by the NSW Government.
The tender is available on the NSW Government's suppliers website along with all the information needed to make an application. The tender closes on 2 February 2021.
