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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-12-02 Daily Xml
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MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS DIRECTORY

Mr KENYON (Newland) (14:18): My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier inform the house about the release of the 2009-10 Major Developments Directory?

The Hon. M.D. RANN (Ramsay—Premier, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Social Inclusion, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change) (14:18): Last Friday, at the annual South Australian Investment Symposium, I launched the 2009-10 Major Developments Directory. The directory brings together information about public and private sector projects in progress or in the pipeline in South Australia. The information contained in the directory provides South Australian businesses with opportunities to link into major projects, plan for the future and help generate jobs in South Australia. The directory shows that the value of major developments in South Australia now stands at a record $71.5 billion. This is testament to the resilience of the state's economy and further proof that the state is emerging strongly from the global slowdown.

Major developments are driving our recovery and bringing jobs, investment and renewed confidence to the South Australian economy. Let me put this into perspective. No directory was issued last year because we had the global financial crisis—a tsunami that was supposed to be heading in our direction—and the challenges have been huge. But the directory was issued the year before, and then it was $44.8 billion. The current figure, of course, is dominated by minerals and energy, urban development and defence projects—so, from $44.8 billion to $71.5 billion.

The 2009-10 directory does not include the $2.58 billion worth of projects completed in the past two years. It outlines a variety of minerals and energy projects (which I know the member for Newland is very keen on) valued at $28.9 billion, highlighting the opportunities available in the resources sector. This government's focus on opening the state up for mining is now paying off. South Australia has gone from four mines to, I think, the latest figure of 11. We had Iluka starting production last week, and we expect 16 to be operating by the end of next year.

There are now more than 20 other projects at the advanced exploration or assessment level, or progressing through prefeasibility to the mining proposal stage. Then there is the planned expansion of BHP Billiton's Olympic Dam resource, which will create the world's greatest mine. We continue to see an expansion of wind farms and geothermal exploration in South Australia as our reputation as a renewable energy leader grows. The development's directory outlines $3.7 billion of renewable energy projects. This includes AGL's Hallett Group of wind farms, Wizard Power's Whyalla Solar Oasis project, as well as geothermal pilot and proof-of-concept projects from Geodynamics and Petratherm, which recently got more than $100 million of support from the federal government.

South Australia also continues to build on its reputation as the nation's defence state. Defence contracts make up more than $9 billion in the current major developments figure. The projects outlined in the directory contribute to the $14 billion worth of defence and security projects awarded to South Australia in the last six years. But I want to make this clear: these figures do not include the massive future submarine project—the largest defence procurement project ever to be undertaken in Australia, estimated to be worth some $30 billion and guaranteed by the Prime Minister, successive ministers of defence and the defence white paper.

Building on South Australia's success in securing the $8 billion air warfare destroyer project, 12 next-generation submarines will be assembled at Techport Australia, Australia's premier naval industry hub. One of the most outstanding aspects of the South Australian Major Developments Directory is the big jump in urban development spending, and I want to pay tribute to the Minister for Infrastructure. There are projects underway and in the pipeline worth $18.6 billion, representing a huge investment in land, housing and associated infrastructure in this state.

The vision for our city's future has been outlined in the draft 30-Year Plan for Greater Adelaide, which was released for public consultation earlier this year. The plan underpins our state's economic growth by ensuring that Adelaide remains a competitive, liveable, climate-resilient city with a unique and enviable lifestyle. The government recognises that this state's productivity and competitiveness rely heavily on the capacity of the state's infrastructure. That is why we have committed to $11.4 billion worth of infrastructure projects over four years as contained in this year's state budget.

This includes a $2 billion investment in public transport, featuring the upgrade and electrification of a metro train network and the ongoing investment to streamline our major north-south road transport corridor. As part of the corridor, the $812 million South Road Superway will provide a 10 metre high road bridge connecting the Port River Expressway to Regency Road. Obviously, there are also schools and health and medical developments valued at more than $4.1 billion, including the new $1.7 billion 800 bed Royal Adelaide Hospital to be built in the heart of the city.

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