Page 38 - Australian Defence Magazine July-August 2021

38 INFRASTRUCTURE
JULY-AUGUST 2021 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
DEFENCE CAPITAL WORKS 2021-2022
The recently-released 2021-2022 Defence budget forecasts the enterprise estate and infrastructure program will consume $6.56 billion of taxpayer’s money in the coming financial year.
NIGEL PITTAWAY | MELBOURNE
THIS figure is split between Defence’s Capability Acquisi- tion Program ($3.44 billion) and Capability Sustainment Program ($3.12 billion) and highlights the Defence Estate and Infrastructure Group’s role in both enabling the ADF’s operations and contributing to critical outcomes. The 2021- 2022 financial year projections represent a $1.28 billion in- crease over the previous year’s estimated actual spending figures, of $2.26 billion for acquisition programs and $3.02 billion for sustainment.
Every major acquisition program included in either the 2016 Integrated Investment Plan and 2020 Force Posture Review has an element of infrastructure work associated with it, and Defence is also on a continuous journey to sig- nificantly upgrade and enhance bases around Australia.
BY THE NUMBERS
To fulfil its responsibilities in terms of major infrastructure work, E&IG has a Capital Works Program and the indi- vidual projects are divided into two categories (major and medium) based on their anticipated cost.
A major capital facilities project is defined as having an expenditure in excess of $75 million and is subject to government and parliamentary approval, via the Joint Par- liamentary Standing Committee on Public Works (PWC). Projects with an expenditure of less than $75 million but
BELOW: Leading Seaman Electronics Technician Jimmy Savage with NUSHIP Arafura at the Osborne Naval Shipyard.
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