Key Facts:
- WA's record $44.3 billion Asset Investment Program requires coordinated planning for construction materials to meet future infrastructure demands.
- The cement, concrete and aggregates industry contributes $1.57 billion to WA's Gross State Product and supports over 6,600 jobs statewide.
- A potential 30% shortfall of heavy construction materials in the Perth/Peel region requires urgent government action and policy reform.
- Strategic quarry resources need protection, approval delays need reduction, and freight efficiency needs improvement to support infrastructure delivery.
- Government-industry collaboration is needed to support lower carbon concrete, circular economy outcomes and sustainable infrastructure development.
Cement Concrete & Aggregates Australia (CCAA) has highlighted the importance of long-term construction materials planning following the Western Australian Government's continued major investment in housing, transport, health, energy and regional infrastructure in the 2026–27 State Budget.
The 2026–27 WA Budget delivers a record $44.3 billion Asset Investment Program over four years, including significant and ongoing investment in METRONET, health infrastructure, energy transition projects, regional development, ports and water infrastructure, as well as a record $4.7 billion investment aimed at boosting housing supply.
CCAA said the scale of construction activity planned across Western Australia, including major projects such as Westport, AUKUS-related defence infrastructure and ongoing industrial development across the Western Trade Coast, will drive sustained long-term demand for heavy construction materials and reinforces the need for efficient approvals processes, supply chain coordination and productivity reforms to support project delivery.
Recent analysis shows the cement, concrete and aggregates industry contributes approximately $1.57 billion to Gross State Product in Western Australia and supports more than 6,600 jobs across the State, reinforcing its role as a key enabler of economic activity and construction delivery, and underpins the $175 billion construction sector.
"Western Australia's transport, housing, renewable energy and social infrastructure all depend on a sustainable supply of cement, concrete and aggregates," CCAA Chief Executive Officer Michael Kilgariff said.
"As the State's infrastructure and housing pipeline continues to grow, it is critical that planning, approvals and procurement settings evolve to support reliable and affordable materials supply."
CCAA's Western Australia Policy Priorities call for the development of a coordinated Heavy Construction Materials Plan, supported by a detailed supply and demand study, to ensure the State has the quarry resources, concrete batching infrastructure and long-term supply chain capacity needed to meet future demand. The WA State Government must act quickly to identify the right programs, policy and legislative settings to address a potential 30% shortfall of heavy construction materials in the Perth/Peel region.
"The industry is seeking a more coordinated whole-of-government approach to understanding future construction materials demand, protecting strategic extractive resources and improving long-term supply planning," Mr Kilgariff said.
"Projects such as Westport, defence infrastructure associated with AUKUS, major transport upgrades and industrial land activation will require significant volumes of quarry materials, concrete and cement over coming decades.
"That reinforces the importance of securing strategic quarry resources, reducing approval delays, improving freight efficiency and ensuring planning systems can respond to the scale and duration of the State's infrastructure pipeline."
CCAA said reducing approval delays, protecting key quarry and concrete batching operations from urban encroachment and improving freight productivity would help deliver infrastructure and housing more efficiently and at lower cost.
CCAA also said there is an opportunity for government and industry to work together on reforms that support lower carbon concrete, circular economy outcomes and more sustainable infrastructure delivery.
"This includes moving toward performance-based specifications, supporting the use of lower carbon materials and aligning procurement frameworks with the State's decarbonisation objectives," Mr Kilgariff said.
"A well-planned and efficient heavy construction materials sector is essential to ensuring Western Australia can continue delivering the infrastructure, housing and economic development needed to support a growing population and economy."
About us:
About CCAA CCAA is the voice of Australia's heavy construction materials industry, an industry that contributes $20.7 billion to GDP and supports 112,970 jobs nationwide. CCAA members produce most of Australia's cement, concrete and aggregates, which are essential to the nation's building and construction sectors.
