Northern Advantage
Townsville is the capital of North Queensland and the major business and logistics hub for the region.
Townsville North Queensland encompasses five major regional centres: Burdekin, Charters Towers, Hinchinbrook, Palm Island and Townsville - the largest city in Northern Australia. North Queensland contributes over $22B to the Queensland economy and is home to over 243,000 people.
The economic diversity and strategic location of Townsville means North Queensland is well-placed for future growth. The region’s economic growth has been driven by its traditional industries such as health and education which continue to grow with new projects and investment. Townsville is home to the largest tertiary referral hospital in regional Queensland and is a major teaching hospital for James Cook University (JCU) and TAFE Queensland North. As the largest Garrison city in Australia, Townsville supports a comprehensive range of capability including air, land and maritime bases for the sustainment of Australia or coalition forces.
The region is recognised as having globally significant potential as a green hydrogen and green industrial production hub. As the global demand for mineral products process with low or zero emissions continue to grow, the Townsville North Queensland region is well placed to establish high-value supply chains through the advanced green manufacturing to customers around the world. Projects such as CopperString 2032 will connect the world-leading renewable energy zones in the North West region to the national grid, providing affordable and reliable energy to Australia.
Infrastructure
Port of Townsville
The Port of Townsville is Northern Australia’s largest container and automotive port, and the country's leading exporter of copper, zinc, lead, sugar, fertiliser and molasses.
The Port of Townsville facilitates the trade of more than 30 commodities, providing linkages to more than 130 ports and 44 countries, with over 75% of trade exchanged with South East Asia. Located next to the largest city in Northern Australia, the Port of Townsville is a vital strategic Defence port and welcomes nearly 30,000 cruise visitors annually.
The Port is well connected by road, with the Port Access Road approved for Triple Road Train access and links to the Bruce and Flinders Highway. Existing rail connections include the Mount Isa Rail Line, the North Coast Line extending to Brisbane and 450 kilometres north to Cairns. The Port is also located within close proximity to two major intermodal terminals.
Trade through the Port of Townsville and Port of Lucinda is forecast to treble over the next 30 years, creating enormous economic prosperity and generating significant employment opportunities for the region.
The Port is currently undergoing a channel widening project, which will allow larger vessels up to 300m in length to access the port.
For more information on the Port of Townsville:
Townsville Airport
Townsville Airport is the centre of aviation in North Queensland and plays a significant role in growing the regional economy by supporting innovation and investment, creating jobs, opportunities and growth.
A joint user facility with the Department of Defence, Townsville Airport operates domestically and also has international airport status.
Townsville Airport operates more than 450 flights per week, and welcoming over 1.6 million passengers travelling through the terminal each year. The recent release of the Townsville Airport masterplan highlights the development of terminal to support the increased passenger numbers, aircraft movements and planning the return of international flights.
Annually, Townsville Airport currently generates over $800 million in output and approximately $400 million in contribution to Gross Regional Product (GRP) as well as supporting 2,500 full-time jobs, including 1,400 jobs generated directly by Townsville Airport.
For more information on the Townsville Airport:
Rail
Rail connectivity is essential for local industries including mining, agriculture, and manufacturing, which rely on rail for transporting products to the Port of Townsville for export.
Rail transport plays a crucial role in the economic development and connectivity linking Townsville North Queensland to major markets. The region's rail infrastructure facilitates the movement of commodities along the north-west rail corridor including mineral concentrates, agriculture products, metals, fuel, fertilizer, sulphur, acids and cement. A recent investment to revisit the development of the Townsville Eastern Access Rail Corridor which aims to streamline the rail route, reducing congestion and improving efficiency of rail movement in and out of the region.
For more information on the Regional Rail Systems visit:
Powerlink / CopperString 2032
This major infrastructure project will see the construction of a 840km transmission line running from Townsville to Mount Isa.
This will be the largest infrastructure project in North Queensland, with construction on workers camps already underway. This project will be a major enabler for new renewable energy projects in the North-West corridor, connecting these projects to the national electricity market (NEM).
For more information on CopperString 2032:
Townsville Enterprise's regional development team are here to assist with any investment enquiries.
