The construction of Sydney’s new airport is directly injecting more than $100 million into businesses in Western Sydney, as new vision shows the incredible transformation of the site since earthworks began.
Western Sydney Airport (WSA) chief executive Simon Hickey said more than 20 million cubic metres of earth has been moved to date in what is one of the biggest earthmoving challenges in Australian history.
“Construction of Western Sydney International has already led to more than $100 million being contracted to businesses across Western Sydney and we are only at the beginning of the build,” Hickey said.
“These Western Sydney businesses – from Indigenous businesses to small and family-run businesses – are delivering equipment and services we need to build Sydney’s new airport. Beyond this direct investment, we know the flow-on effects of this economic stimulus go much further when it comes to boosting the local economy, whether it’s the construction worker buying lunch at the local café or refueling at the local petrol station.”
Mr Hickey noted that Sydney’s future airport is continuing to exceed all employment targets for local, Indigenous and learning workers. Half the project’s workforce is from Western Sydney, exceeding the construction phase target of 30 percent. From 2026 when the airport opens, at least 50 percent of people working at the airport must be from Western Sydney.
“This project will be a game-changer for Western Sydney locals who want to work closer to home and have more time to spend with their families, not just in the construction phase, but for many decades to come. It’s more important than ever that a nation-building project like Western Sydney International gets on with the task of creating jobs and driving the local investment Western Sydney needs to recover from the pandemic,” he remarked.
Frank Zammit, managing director of local subcontractor Two Way Cranes, said he is proud to see his cranes at work on the airport construction site.
“I’m a proud Bringelly boy and have lived in Western Sydney all my life – my family were local dairy farmers in the area – and watching the progress being made here and being a part of it is so exciting,” Zammit said.
“It’s exciting to be playing a part in the future development of Western Sydney and it’s great to see the opportunities the airport is already bringing to local businesses and workers.”
A new timelapse animation demonstrates the significant engineering feat underway to build Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport, using 3D survey scans combined with high-grade satellite imagery to capture the evolving topography of the massive 1,780-hectare site.
In related news, Australia’s largest and only listed airport operator Sydney Airport Holdings announced today, 8 November, that it has agreed to accept a US$17.46 billion takeover bid from an infrastructure investor group in one of Australia’s biggest ever buyouts, according to a Reuters report.
