CANBERRA, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Australia's largest ship lift has been granted final approval with contractual close for a loan, clearing the way for construction to begin.
The government on Thursday signed-off on a 300-million-Australian dollar (219.1-million-U.S. dollar) loan to the Northern Territory (NT) government for the facility, which will be built near the Port of Darwin by 2023.
When completed, the facility will be capable of lifting ships weighing up to 5,000 tons and as long as 103 meters, making Darwin a major ship maintenance hub.
According to a business study for the project, the lift will generate 260 million AUD (189.9 million USD) for the local economy every year.
"When it is operating, the ship lift will be capable of servicing vessels involved in the offshore petroleum, fishing and pearling industries, as well as Defence and Australian Border Force vessels," said Assistant Minister for Northern Australia Michelle Landry.
Thursday's final approval comes almost one year after funding was first announced for the project under the Northern Australia Infrastructure Fund (NAIF) in December 2019. Enditem
