Chaffey Dam to Dungowan pipeline ownership uncertain; Tamworth Regional Council lobbying to take over from WaterNSW

Tamworth Regional Council (TRC) is lobbying hard to take over ownership of the new pipeline from Chaffey Dam to Dungowan, and the pump station that goes with it, from WaterNSW.

The new 18km section of pipeline joins with a council-owned pipeline at Dungowan. The aim being to get water all the way from Chaffey Dam to Calala without losing any in transmission.

So, it could be the case that there would be two different owners of two different sections of the same pipeline - a situation Tamworth council described as "untenable".

"We're not confident in how workable that arrangement might be," Tamworth mayor Col Murray said on Monday.

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A spokesman from Water NSW said the agency is "collaborating effectively with TRC ... and we expect this relationship to continue once the pipeline becomes fully operational."

Cr Murray said he doesn't know what the cost to council would be if WaterNSW maintained ownership.

"WaterNSW have a responsibility to the government to return a dividend and get cost recovery on their assets ... so who knows, there'll be a process where this whole proposition will go before IPART (Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal) to, I guess, assume a contribution from council and ratepayers," he said.

"If we look at the cost of providing water from Chaffey Dam, we're already one of the dearest agencies that use raw water delivered by WaterNSW in the state, so if the cost of water goes up, our concerns are the impact that'll have on residents and businesses."

A council report said the cost of water provided by WaterNSW to council could increase further to reflect the ownership of the asset by the agency, and because Tamworth Regional Council is the only customer of the pipeline, it will have to foot the bill.

WaterNSW said it is regulated by IPART, which determines the cost of water.

Cr Murray said as the only city taking water from the pipeline, the local council should be able to manage its operations on a day-to-day basis.

"Confidence in the water sharing plan which determines how WaterNSW manages the water is where council's confidence is in question," Cr Murray said.

Owning the pipeline would give Tamworth council more flexibility around sourcing water from Chaffey Dam, the council report states.

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Tamworth council has openly criticised the inflexibility of environmental releases from the dam, which WaterNSW said it is obliged to do under state government planning approval conditions for the Dungowan weir.

WaterNSW declined to comment on whether or not it would prefer to maintain ownership.

Discussions between the local and state governments and WaterNSW about who should own the pipeline have been ongoing, but Cr Murray said council submitted a formal letter to the minister for water, Melinda Pavey, on March 16. It is yet to receive a response.

He said it's a complex process, because they're not talking about "chicken feed", but a $44 million piece of state-funded infrastructure.

But with the Chaffey Dam pipeline in action for more than a week now, Cr Murray said it's time to "bring the matter to a head" and get a final decision.

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