Middle Arm business case rejected for consideration, EPA deadline pushed back two years

The draft business case for a major industrial hub being developed in the Top End has been knocked back, and a two-year extension granted on a key environmental regulatory check.

Time frames for the proposed Middle Arm industrial hub have blown out considerably.

The timeline for a proposed industrial hub at Middle Arm has blown out by years, with its draft business case knocked back by Infrastructure Australia.

Initial plans for Middle Arm had work commencing on site in late 2025 or early 2026, but the Territory government said federal approvals had “sadly taken longer than they should have”.

The Middle Arm Sustainable Development Precinct is a centrepiece of the NT government’s economic strategy, proposing to host critical minerals, green hydrogen, and fracked gas processing facilities at the site 13km south of Darwin City.

Artist mock up of the Middle Arm Sustainable Development Precinct.

The federal government’s $1.5bn commitment to the project must be approved by its independent advisory body Infrastructure Australia body before it goes ahead.

A business case submitted by the NT government to Infrastructure Australia in February was not accepted for consideration; a failed Freedom of Information request made by the Environment Centre NT proving the document was submitted, but not what it contained nor why it was knocked back.

In a submission to the Senate Inquiry into Middle Arm in October last year, Infrastructure Australia said the business case must meet three criteria: strategic fit, societal impact and deliverability.

It noted separate business cases for components of common user infrastructure at Middle Arm may be required if funding is staged.

Meanwhile, the NT Environment Protection Authority has extended the deadline for the NT government to submit its draft environmental impact statement by two years.

Originally due on October 7 this year, the NT EPA has pushed back the deadline to October 2026 at the request of the Infrastructure Department.

NT Infrastructure Minister Bill Yan. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Infrastructure Minister Bill Yan pointed the finger at the Commonwealth for the delays.

“I know from our department’s perspective, dealing with the federal government, there’s been an eight to 12 month delay in getting a response back on some of those environmental approvals,” he said.

“I don’t know if the actual delay (will be) two years.”

Mr Yan said Middle Arm was “like a jigsaw puzzle”, with funding tied up in interrelated environmental and infrastructure requirements.

“Each one of those is a piece of work, and I know that our department and the Territory government are working with the federal government to work through those issues and get those approvals done in a timely process.”

Environment Centre NT said it was “a national scandal” to see billions of tax dollars earmarked for the NT “sitting idle in the federal contingency reserve that won’t be spent for years”.

“The Middle Arm Industrial Hub project is a sinking ship and in complete disarray,” executive director Kirsty Howey said.

“Without delay, the Albanese Government must redirect the Middle Arm gas subsidy into initiatives in the Territory that will improve the lives of Territorians.”