A representative from the Singleton Horticulture Project was in Tennant this week to chat with businesses and stakeholders about the future of the almost 3,000 square kilometre horticulture lease which will be used to grow grapes and rockmelons.

The multi-million dollar project at Singleton Station will be developed in four stages over an eight year period and expected to create thousands of jobs each year in the region.

Situated 120 kilometres south of Tennant Creek, Fortune Agribusiness founder Peter Wood (pictured) said a community hub would be created to house the workforce and the power supply would be significantly upgraded including communications.

The economic benefits to the Barkly will include employment of more than 110 permanent staff and up to 1,350 season workers.

Additional employment opportunities will come from infrastructure (such as packing sheds and cold storage) and the new community facilities.

Mr Wood said training and employment of an Indigenous workforce will be conducted across all aspects of the project.

The company has a licence to use the aquifer, with the amount of water available based on calculated recharge of water, with rainfall events periodically replenishing the precious resource extracted for irrigation.

“The Barkly is the perfect site with the land already having access to the exisiting power network from Tennant Creek to Ali Curung,” said Mr Wood.

“There is also access to the Stuart Highway and the Adelaide to Darwin railway and there is minimal pest and disease issues affecting the horticultural production, which reduces the need for on-farm pesticides.

“Not to mention the ideal climate with negligible frost risk and low humidity and the soil which is a deep, coarse-grained, sandy loam with excellent drainage.”

Mr Woods said the plan was to install a new solar array which would help contribute to the NT Government’s carbon emissions reduction target, plus improve the phone and internet communication systems for the benefit of the region.

The Singleton Horticulture Project has obtained an AAPA clearance certificate to ensure Indigenous sacred sites are protected plus an Indigenous ranger program will be invited to help in the establishment and management of monitoring the program.

This article appeared in Tennant & District Times, 16 July 2021.