A TAMWORTH councillor has questioned the accuracy of the $400 million price tag the state government has slapped on a proposed expansion of Dungowan Dam.
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Russell Webb will move a notice of motion at Tuesday’s council meeting calling for “an independent quantity surveyor review the work that has been done to date and to verify whether the cost estimates are accurate”.
The federal government has pledged $75 million to upgrade the dam and also gave $850,000 to the NSW government to conduct a feasibility study on a potential expansion from 6.3 gigalitres to 44 gigalitres.
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“We have now reached a point where the state government is essentially saying it is too expensive to build a new dam if these estimates are correct and the federal government is contemplating withdrawing its funding offer,” Cr Webb said.
“The matter in question is whether the estimated cost is accurate.”
New England MP Barnaby Joyce said the federal commitment to expansion could be withdrawn, if the project didn’t start soon.