20/11/2025

November 20, 2025

The Daily Dirt Aus

By G’day Construction………….…… 

THE MORNING PAPER FOR CONSTRUCTION PROFESSIONALS AND TRADIES

🚨 Safety Updates

NT WorkSafe urges Top End businesses to secure worksites for cyclone season as a tropical low may intensify. Review emergency plans, brief workers, secure materials, plant and fencing, and prepare for evacuations. Construction sites should remove or secure scaffolding, brace structures, and protect excavations. Monitor weather updates and follow safety guidance.

âś’ Headlines & Industry

Day one of Queensland’s CFMEU inquiry focused on claims of intimidation, lawless behaviour and improper influence over safety regulators. Investigator Geoffrey Watson detailed violence, AWU “turf wars”, and links to a man now charged with murder. Contractors and officials showed poor cooperation, as evidence suggested entrenched misconduct within the union.

Australia’s student housing sector is accelerating, with 40,000 new purpose-built beds in the development pipeline. Federal policy linking international student visas to accommodation drives approvals and construction nationwide. Projects span all states, with Perth, Adelaide, and NSW seeing strong activity, while high taxes in Victoria are slowing investment and delivery.

Veolia secures $700 million in long-term Australian water contracts, including Central Highlands Water, Hunter Water, and Seqwater. The deals cover treatment plant operations, digital optimisation, and renewable energy integration, enhancing efficiency, climate resilience, and sustainability while supporting population growth, ageing infrastructure management, and long-term regional water security.

🏗️ Projects

ACT

The proposed light rail Stage 2B in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) could potentially be extended a few kilometres past Woden to reach Mawson. A final decision will be made in the 2028/29 business case, considering environmental approvals, design, cost, and government priorities. Early planning has already mapped four possible alignments for the extension.

NSW

NSW unveils plans to revitalize Nowra’s CBD with the Riverfront and Mandalay Sub-Precincts, unlocking over 900 new homes. Rezoning allows higher building heights, mixed-use developments, and affordable housing, while supporting new restaurants, jobs, and riverfront activation. Infrastructure upgrades, including roads and hospital expansion, underpin long-term growth and local construction opportunities.

The Minns and Albanese Governments seek community input on $100 million in Bells Line of Road safety upgrades, including curve widenings, intersection improvements, shoulders, fauna protection, and heavy vehicle rest areas. Locals can provide feedback online or in person until 14 December, with the final program confirmed in 2026.

Planning is underway in regional New South Wales to rebuild the heritage-listed Crankies Plain Bridge, enhancing its load capacity, safety, and resilience while preserving its historical timber truss design, ensuring it continues to serve the local community for years to come.

 

QLD

Acenergy’s 500 MW Central BESS near Rockhampton will proceed after a court overturned council rejection. The project requires site redesigns for firefighting, vegetation, acoustic, stormwater, and flood measures. Construction can now advance, joining other nearby battery projects, despite local opposition, signaling continued development of large-scale energy storage infrastructure in the region.

Alphabet (Google) is set to build a data hub on Christmas Island, enhancing regional connectivity via new subsea cables. The hub, smaller than global centers, will use existing diesel power while promoting renewable energy investment. The project supports local infrastructure, with potential strategic, technological, and AI-enabled security applications.

VIC

Victoria’s Liberals have again pledged to “pause” the Suburban Rail Loop, effectively cancelling it. This would halt construction, sack 4,000 workers and block 70,000 planned homes near stations. With works underway and tunnelling due next year, Labor says stopping SRL now would damage jobs, housing supply and future transport connectivity.

 

WA

ECU City’s arrival is accelerating CBD construction, with 6500 student beds in the pipeline across multiple high-rise projects. New 33-storey and 35-storey towers are underway or approved, alongside major precinct redevelopments like Carillon City. Perth is rapidly expanding purpose-built student accommodation to meet demand and support future inner-city growth.

Mining giant Rio Tinto scraps a $215 million research centre and green steel project touted last year as a key staging ground for the world's net zero transition. The site in Rockingham, south of Perth, will be handed instead to Australian technology company Calix for a green iron pilot plant, along with a $35 million investment in its zero-emission steelmaking technology.

Construction has begun in Bunbury, Western Australia on a $50 million recycled water scheme to support long-term water security amid hotter, drier conditions. The project, led by Guidera O’Connor (treatment facility design and build) and Geographe Civil (pipeline construction), will irrigate 43 hectares of green space, reduce reliance on the Yarragadee Aquifer, create 150–200 local jobs, and deliver recycled water by summer 2027, strengthening regional climate resilience and supporting local industry.

The WA Government has approved the $300 million development of a marine and aviation logistics base on the narrow, 6km-long island by an Australian company backed by a global US investor. The company’s backers include global investor Cerberus Capital Management, which has nearly $100 billion under management and was at one stage said to be interested in buying WA naval shipbuilder Austal.

🚀 Innovation, Digital & Futuristic Technology

Japanese Team Finds Novel solution to Backfilling Issues in Construction ZonesShibaura Institute of Technology in Japan has developed a circulating mixing technique for borehole backfilling, ensuring uniform material distribution and preventing ground settlement. Verified through field tests and numerical simulations, the method enhances safety, supports tall-building construction on existing piles, accelerates urban infrastructure renewal, and reduces construction waste and environmental impact.

Standards Australia has released SA HB 268 for public comment until 13 January 2026, providing guidance on prefabricated and modular construction. The handbook promotes consistency, safety, environmental efficiency, faster build times, and cost reduction. It aims to support housing accessibility, fair competition, and lays the foundation for future Australian Standards.

Nano-titanium dioxide enhances M40 concrete, improving strength and durability while offering economic benefits, crucial for sustainable construction practices.

Bedrock Robotics, in partnership with Sundt Construction, deployed autonomous excavators to remove 65,000 cubic yards of earth on a 130-acre Southwest U.S. manufacturing site. The technology operates across 20–80 ton excavators, easing operator shortages, boosting efficiency, and allowing skilled workers to focus on complex tasks, demonstrating commercial viability for large-scale autonomous construction.

🌱 Sustainability ​& Environment

The Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) has appointed four new Directors—Dale Connor (Lendlease), Paul Dalton (CSR), Rowan Griffin (QIC), and Christina Tonkin (ANZ)—bringing expertise in construction, materials, finance, and sustainability. Their leadership will guide Green Star, industry impact, and Australia’s transition to a low-carbon, climate-resilient built environment.

🌏 Around the World

Squadron Energy has started pouring concrete foundations for its 414 MW Uungula Wind Farm, the largest currently under construction in New South Wales. Located 14 km east of Wellington, the project will install 69 turbines, powering over 220,000 homes and preventing 560,000 tonnes of carbon emissions. First concrete pours began mid-October, with anchor cages and reinforcing steel underway. Uungula is the only NSW wind project actively being built, though larger projects like Spicers Creek (700 MW) and Yanco Delta (1.45 GW) are planned.

Texas voters approved a historic $20 billion water infrastructure package over 20 years, funding pipe repairs, treatment upgrades, new supplies, and conservation. Proposition 4 dedicates $1 billion annually from state sales tax revenue, with at least half for supply expansion. The bipartisan measure passed with 70% support, ensuring long-term water resilience.

In 2025, U.S. construction sees growth in reconstruction projects, adaptive reuse, data centers, and megaprojects, despite economic uncertainty. Labor shortages and rising material costs challenge firms, while residential construction remains constrained by mortgage rates. Data centers surged 15%, megaprojects rose 47%, and cost control and strategic bidding will be critical for navigating 2026 successfully.

đź“– Miscellaneous

Fluor, Tutor Perini, Granite, Skanska Release 3Q Financial Reports

In Q3 2025, major contractors reported mixed results. Granite Construction’s revenue grew 12% to $1.4 billion, with materials and construction segments both posting strong profits. Tutor Perini saw a 31% rise to $1.4 billion, driven by civil and special contracting work. Skanska’s construction revenue increased slightly to $4.5 billion, with operating income up 16%. Fluor’s total revenue fell 18% to $3.4 billion due to a $653 million lawsuit in Queensland, although its Urban Solutions division grew 21% to $2.3 billion. Overall, backlogs and new awards indicate continuing industry activity despite legal setbacks.

DJI’s new white paper highlights Australian mining case studies using DJI Dock systems for fully automated BVLOS drone operations, showing 60% efficiency gains. Operations at Rio Tinto’s Gudai-Darri and Norton Gold Fields’ Paddington mine improved survey speed, data processing, and safety, demonstrating how automation enhances productivity and worker protection in extreme conditions.

AECOM is boosting its focus on construction and building sectors, targeting a 20%+ operating margin by FY2028 and 15%+ EPS growth through FY2029. Growth is driven by high-return investments in AECOM AI and Advisory services. The company is also reviewing its Construction Management business, including a potential sale, to prioritize faster-growing, higher-margin construction opportunities.

U.S. utilities are facing a surge in speculative electricity requests from AI data center developers. Overestimated demand risks overbuilding power plants, raising consumer costs. With chip shortages limiting actual computing, regulators are introducing rules, like Ohio’s large-load tariffs, to curb speculative load growth and reduce cross-subsidization by other ratepayers.

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