The Hottest Infrastructure Market in Australia
- Tahnia Miller
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
For years, South Australia has flown under the radar in national infrastructure conversations. But that era is over.
Right now, SA is assembling one of the most significant pipelines of infrastructure, resources and defence projects anywhere in the country, and the combined labour demand is about to reshape the national talent market.
If you were expecting the slowdown in Victorian major projects to “fix” Queensland’s workforce shortages next year… think again.
Adelaide is a stone’s throw away, aggressively hiring, and gearing up for a decade-long surge.
Here’s what’s happening and why every infrastructure employer in Australia should be paying attention.
The Osborne Submarine Construction Yard
At Osborne, South Australia is preparing to build Australia’s first SSN-AUKUS submarines by the end of this decade.
To make it possible, an entirely new Submarine Construction Yard is being developed north of the existing naval precinct, a massive expansion that will require:
major enabling works
new utilities and logistics infrastructure
tunnel boring, heavy civils, and marine works
advanced manufacturing specialists
systems engineers, planners, cost engineers, schedulers and supply chain experts
Community engagement is already underway, environmental approvals are moving through government, and foundational works are being delivered now.
This is a multi-decade pipeline. Once ramped up, it will compete directly with every major project in Australia for engineering, project management and trades capability.
BHP's Expansion at Olympic Dam
Copper demand is forecast to rise 70% by 2050, and South Australia holds two-thirds of the nation’s resource.
BHP is deep in the middle of a major program at Olympic Dam, including:
expanded underground electric rail
new backfill systems
a new oxygen plant to boost smelting output
nearly 200 new construction jobs at peak
This is the beginning of a generational expansion in Australia’s copper province, requiring civil engineers, mechanical engineers, electrical specialists, geotechs, planners, and contract managers at scale.
The T2D Project
Worth $15.4 billion, The River Torrens to Darlington Project will complete the final link of Adelaide’s North-South Corridor, with 78km of motorway.
The project includes:
three massive TBMs (with two more smaller TBMs for cross passages)
twin 4.5km southern tunnels
twin 2.2km northern tunnels
With the first TBMs arrive late 2025 and major tunnelling to begin in 2026, this is a mega-project requiring high-caliber engineering and delivery teams for the next 8–10 years.
The Eyre Peninsula Desalination Plant
South Australia has also approved construction of a $330 million desalination plant, designed to deliver 16–24 megalitres per day by 2032.
It’s a technically complex project involving:
trenchless construction
seabed excavation
coastal works
marine pipelines up to 1km offshore
What does this mean for the Queensland’s Workforce?
While the South Australian infrastructure pipeline continues to expand, Queensland is preparing for its own unprecedented delivery period. With the 2032 Olympics approaching, alongside major renewables projects, and road and rail upgrades, the state is heading into one of the tightest labour markets in the country.
As SA accelerates programs that demand engineers, project managers, planners, commercial specialists, and technical delivery talent, Queensland will be competing for many of the same skills at the same time.
For Queensland, the challenge is clear: securing and developing a sustainable workforce before the peak hits. That means early planning, tighter industry–government coordination, and ensuring the talent pipeline (local, interstate, and international) can meet the scale of what’s coming.
Because when every state is building big, the real differentiator won’t just be funding or ambition. It will be the people who can deliver it.