Barkly Regional Council, Media Release, 28 July 2025

The Barkly Regional Council today issued a strong call to action, urging the Northern Territory Government, Infrastructure Australia, and all stakeholders to reinstate Tennant Creek as a core component of the Territory Energy Link (TEL) corridor. The Council asserts that bypassing Tennant Creek risks squandering decades of strategic planning and undermining critical regional development.

“Our region is not only poised to support the Territory economy but is fast becoming an engine room for the Nation,” said Barkly Regional Council Mayor, Sid Vashist “As the Territory Energy Link corridor moves into its feasibility phase, it’s critical we ensure Tennant Creek remains central to this vision.”

Originally conceptualised as the Tennant Creek to Darwin Infrastructure Corridor, the TEL’s focus has shifted to run from near Elliott to the Middle Arm Precinct in Darwin. While the proposed 670km multi-user, multi-asset infrastructure corridor is visionary, enabling gas, water, optical fibre, hydrogen, and future-facing services, the decision to bypass Tennant Creek raises significant concerns.

Why Tennant Creek must not be left out:

• Logical and historical hub: Tennant Creek has long been envisioned as a mines and energy hub, connecting Australia’s north-south (Adelaide–Darwin) and east-west (Queensland–NT–WA) freight and energy corridors. It already hosts critical infrastructure, including rail, roads, and communications, making it uniquely positioned to support a hub-and-spoke model for resource distribution across Northern Australia.

• Critical intersections: Tennant Creek connects the Stuart Highway (north-south) with the Barkly Highway (east-west), two of Australia’s most vital freight routes. Excluding Tennant Creek risks disconnecting this national infrastructure artery and losing future east-west integration, such as the Mt Isa–Tennant Creek rail proposal and Beetaloo to Qld energy export pathways.

• Surge in investment confidence: Tennant Creek is currently experiencing significant investment from industry, exploration companies, government, and social infrastructure providers. Diverting the TEL now sends a negative signal, risking confidence, reducing private capital flow, and undermining long-term commitments in education, health, housing, and community services.

• Essential service hub for energy & resource projects: The Beetaloo Sub Basin and surrounding resource zones will require a central logistics, service, and maintenance hub. Tennant Creek offers the workforce potential, transport accessibility, and Indigenous partnerships to support this, and is better positioned to provide foundational infrastructure for hydrogen, gas, and minerals processing and services.

• Cost vs. opportunity: While realigning to Tennant Creek may appear to carry short-term cost implications, the long-term benefits – including economic resilience, diversification, private sector leverage, and Indigenous employment – offer exponential returns. The Council warns against repeating past mistakes of underinvesting in enabling infrastructure across regional Australia.

The Barkly Regional Council urges the Northern Territory Government, Infrastructure Australia, and all levels of industry, investors, Traditional Owners, and the private sector to have their say.

“Let us not lose the futurist and strategic vision of this corridor,” the Council stated. “This is a once-in-a-century opportunity to shape our Territory’s infrastructure blueprint. Tennant Creek should not just be near this corridor — it must be part of it. Let’s not cut out the heart of the Centre. Let’s back the Barkly.”

Specifically, the Council is calling for:

• Reinstatement of Tennant Creek in the core alignment of the Territory Energy Link.
• Detailed assessment of a Tennant Creek–Elliott connection within the feasibility process.
• Modelling of Tennant Creek as a hub-and-spoke node, supporting regional growth, workforce training, and service delivery.
• Transparent community and stakeholder consultation to avoid decision-making that lacks Barkly representation.