BESIX Watpac is the successful proponent for the stadium build, after being named as one of two shortlisted to complete the build in April.
The other unsuccessful tenderer for the build was a joint venture bid that included the Italian Webuild S.p.A, China Construction Oceania and McConnell Dowell, a New Zealand company.
BESIX Watpac was founded in Australia and recently completed the design and build of One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch. It also worked on the ten-year-long project to transform the Gabba from a 13,000-seat stadium into the 42,000-seat venue it is now.
“We have searched the globe to find the best possible builder for our Macquarie Point stadium,” said Tasmania’s Premier Jeremy Rockliff.
“This moment cannot be understated – we are on the cusp of delivering thousands of jobs, injecting billions into our economy and creating a precinct that every single Tasmanian can be proud of.
“Activity will soon increase at the precinct, bringing with it opportunity and activity the likes of which Hobart has never seen before.
“Over the coming month the Watpac team will continue to work with the Macquarie Point Development Corporation to finalise details to inform the delivery of this project.”
The state’s minister for the renewal of the Macquarie Point site, Eric Abetz, said the BESIX Watpac proposal had been through a “comprehensive evaluation process involving subject matter experts, technical specialists, advisers, commercial experts and multiple layers of governance and probity oversight”.
There is still a second stage of assessment that BESIX Watpac will go through before any final decision is made to award it the contract to build the stadium. The Tasmanian Government is aiming to award the contract by the end of this year.
BESIX Watpac – this time in partnership with John Holland – has also emerged as the single proponent to build Brisbane’s new stadium in Victoria Park.
The Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority (GIICA), which is overseeing the delivery of several new venues for Brisbane’s Olympic Games in 2032, announced at the end of September that the BESIX Watpac-John Holland joint venture had moved to the next stage of the selection process for the stadium build.
“With a track record of delivering every major stadium in Queensland without missing an opening, a century of local heritage and our Brisbane-based headquarters, we are proud to progress [to] the next stage of development for Brisbane Stadium,” said BESIX Watpac CEO Mark Baker.
“We’ve never been more ready to play a crucial part in shaping Queensland’s legacy through this defining project.”
The contract for the Brisbane stadium is expected to be finalised next year, with construction to begin in 2027.
