Downer awarded preferred tenderer on Fortescue Christmas Creek contract

Downer EDI Limited (Downer) this week announced they have been awarded preferred tenderer status on a $3 billion six-year contract with Fortescue Metals Group Limited, for the provision of mining services at its Christmas Creek operation in the east Pilbara Region of Western Australia.

Contract negotiations for the project are still to be completed but are expected to be finalised in June 2010, with project commencement scheduled for July 2010.

The contracted services will include the establishment of infrastructure, drill and blast, load and haul overburden, and an expected BCM of 343 million over a six-year period.

This news comes off the announcement last week that they have secured new orders totalling more than $300 million across the Group.

Since February 2010, the Group has secured more than $1 billion of work and they are in a preferred position on over $3.5 billion of projects which they expect will be awarded in the next few months.

Downer’s Engineering division has been awarded over $200 million worth of work in the energy and renewable energy sectors including a contract, valued at over $100 million, for the design and construction of 111 wind turbine generators as well as access roads and civil and electrical balance-of-plant works at Collgar Wind Farms, in central Western Australia.

In addition, the Engineering division has also been selected as a panel member by Powerlink for major transmission projects in Queensland for the next five years. This is the first major contract awarded under Powerlink's transmission line panel agreement after the conclusion of the PAC agreements that were in place for the past four years.

The contract is for the design and construction of a combined 132/275kV double circuit transmission line from Yabulu South to Ingham in North Queensland (approximately 93 km). Works also include the removal of an existing 132kV line consisting of steel lattice towers over a distance of approximately 87km.

It is anticipated that the new work will create significant job opportunities.