The Australian Government has announced seven major tenders for the first stage of High Speed Rail from Newcastle to Sydney.

This marks the start of the Development Phase, which will involve finalising the design, approvals process, scope and cost of the project.

The packages will cover key technical, environmental, engineering and project delivery.

They will also support environmental approvals and corridor protection activities, ensuring that these are in place when the government makes an investment decision after the development phase is complete.

The packages include:

More information is available on the AusTender website here.

Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King said the tenders show that the government is getting on with delivering High Speed Rail.

“The expert teams we are seeking to appoint will help us form a detailed plan to deliver High Speed Rail, supporting thousands of highly skilled jobs across engineering and project management in the process,” she said.

“Australian workers and businesses will be front and centre of delivering this project.

“Taking these roles to tender show real and measurable progress. Every contract awarded brings us one step closer to delivering faster more reliable rail between Newcastle and Sydney.”