What we've done
The Sugarloaf Pipeline Alliance built a 70km, large-diameter pipeline from the Goulburn River near Yea to the Sugarloaf Reservoir, 35km east of Melbourne. The Sugarloaf Pipeline will deliver Melbourne’s share of water savings from the $2 billion Northern Victoria Irrigation Renewal Project.
Key achievements
The Sugarloaf Pipeline Alliance and Melbourne Water achieved several highlights as part of the project:
- constructed the 70km Sugarloaf Pipeline, which also includes: two pump stations, a power substation, two large structural-steel tanks and inlet structure at Sugarloaf Reservoir
- upgraded the existing Winneke Water Treatment Plant to increase its capacity
- made improvements to the existing Melbourne Water distribution network.
What will the Sugarloaf Pipeline do?
The Sugarloaf Pipeline will deliver up to 75 billion litres of water annually. This 75 billion litres is one-third of the savings to be made from Stage One of the Northern Victoria Irrigation Renewal Project. The other two-thirds (150 billion litres) will be shared equally between irrigators and the environment.
The Northern Victoria Irrigation Renewal Project is a $2 billion, two stage investment. It will make the Goulburn–Murray Irrigation District the most sophisticated and efficient of its kind in the world.
The project to build the Sugarloaf Pipeline is part of the Victorian Government's $4.9 billion Our Water, Our Future - The Next Stage of the Government's Water Plan.
The Northern Victoria Irrigation Renewal Project is administered by the Department of Sustainability and Environment.
How much will it cost?
The Sugarloaf Pipeline Project cost $750 million. It was funded by Melbourne’s water users through Melbourne Water. This funded the now completed projects:
| $625 million | construction of the 70km pipeline connecting the Goulburn River to the Sugarloaf Reservoir |
| $125 million | improvements to the Sugarloaf Reservoir and upgrade to Melbourne’s water treatment and distribution network to accept this new source of water |
In addition, Melbourne Water is contributing $300 million towards Stage One of the Northern Victoria Irrigation Renewal Project.
Further information
- Latest News for the latest news.
- Where is it? for a description of the location of the pipeline.
- Timeline for an overview of the planning, Northern Victoria Irrigation Renewal Project at Our Water Our Future for more information on the Northern Victoria Irrigation Renewal Project.
