The facility is being financed through the Recycling Modernisation Fund
Maddocks is assisting the ACT government with the design, build and operation arrangements of a new recycling facility.
The facility is set to be one of the most advanced material recovery facilities in Australia, the firm said. Waste, water and energy management company Veolia will team up with the Australian and ACT governments on the facility, which will be financed through the Recycling Modernisation Fund.
The facility will organise paper and cardboard, glass, plastic, steel and aluminium. It will bolster recovery rates as it generates high purity in materials for recycling.
Veolia will handle the facility’s design, build and operation. Construction is set to commence next year; the previous material recovery facility will be demolished in the process. The project is expected to create over 130 jobs, and the ACT’s recyclable materials will no longer need to be transported interstate.
Maddocks guided Transport Canberra and City Services and Infrastructure Canberra via the the ACT Government Solicitor on the infrastructure project’s legal arrangements. The firm started by helping with procurement and contract structuring; subsequently, the team also advised on the procurement process including “the contract arrangements through to negotiation support on contract negotiations to close out the transaction documents necessary for the PPP-style arrangement”, Maddocks said.
The firm’s team was made up of lawyers from Sydney and Canberra, led by infrastructure partner Pria O’Sullivan and waste contracting expert and partner Joshua Same. The partners were assisted by senior associate Sarah De Ceglie, lawyer Susan Guo, and the firm’s property and PPP specialists.
“We were very pleased to have worked closely with Infrastructure Canberra and TCCS to close out the procurement of a specialist waste contractor to deliver and operate a replacement recyclables facility that will continue to service not only the Territory but surrounding regions in NSW on a long-term basis”, O’Sullivan said.
The Recycling Modernisation Fund expands the country’s capacity to sort, process and remanufacture glass, plastic, tyres, paper and cardboard. Coupled with co-investment from all Australian states, territories and industry, the fund provides a $1bn increase for Australian recycling.
Last month, Maddocks was recognised as a leading graduate employer in the country in the Australian Association of Graduate Employees’ 2025 Top Graduate Employer Rankings.
