PROJECT
Seqwater Dam Improvement Program
In accordance with its Dam Safety Management Program and Dam Safety Policy, is undertaking the planning and delivery of the upgrade of the Somerset, Wivenhoe, North Pine and Lake Macdonald dams. The dams plan an important role in the South East Queensland water grid and continued performance and safety is critical to the region. The Dam Improvement Program will improve the capability of Seqwater's network of dams to withstand extreme floods and earthquakes.
PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS
Location
South East Queensland
Client
Seqwater
Project Value
$4-6 billion
Contract Period
April 2022 - Q4 2026
PROJECT BACKGROUND
Seqwater is carrying out the Dam Improvement Program (DIP) of works to upgrade several dams across its portfolio. The dam improvements are being undertaken to ensure the dams meet the requirements of the Queensland Dam Safety Management Guidelines (2024) and requirements of the Guidelines on safety assessments for referable dams (2025).
The Program of works includes:
- Wivenhoe Dam
- Somerset Dam
- North Pine Dam
- Lake Macdonald
The program will improve the long-term viability of the dam assets so that they can continue to:
- Safely pass excess volumes of water during periods of extreme rainfall
- Meet modern engineering design standards
- Improve community safety and water supply security
- Comply with the safety requirements set out in the Water Supply (Safety and Reliability) Act 2008 (Qld).
The project aims to deliver the upgrades without impacting the security of the drinking water supply.
CPM was engaged as an integrated Delivery Partner to provide a variety of roles to manage the planning and delivery phases across all four dams.
We commenced our engagement with Seqwater in April 2022 and were given tight timeframes to establish the project requirements and project management plans, providing confidence to key stakeholders that the program could meet statutory deadlines.
CPM onboarded team members efficiently and, given our experience in working within the Queensland Government Project Governance frameworks, were able to achieve milestones either before or on target dates.
To support the continued success of the DIP and to provide a structured program level overview, we developed the DIP operating model, a combined strategy and operations-focused blueprint that aligned the program's purpose, vision, and ambitions with a clear program management plan. Its goal was to develop a program approach to key elements of the DIP in accordance with Seqwater's program management framework, standardising these key elements across projects.
Roles
- General Manager Capital Delivery (Dam Improvement)
- Program Director
- Program Manager
- Project Managers
- Design Manager, Technical Advisors and Engineers
- Document Controller
- Cost Controller
- Environmental Advisor
- Commercial Manager, Procurement and Contract Administration
- Project Officers.
CPM SCOPE OF WORK
CPM was engaged as part of an integrated delivery team with Seqwater to manage and lead the program and project planning and delivery phases including scope development, transaction strategy development, delivery partner selection and subsequently ensure works are executed per the contract requirements.
Activities included:
- Program and project management requirements
- Developing a program management plan that outlines the operationalisation, governance and the ongoing improvement of the operating model in the DIP team
- Developing a program risk register and risk management strategy in accordance with Seqwater's Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) framework
- Developing a Technical Governance strategy and organisational structure for technical decision-making on DIP projects
- Developing an alternative funding approach to ensure the Business Case Development Framework (BCDF) is fit-for-purpose for the funding approvals of DIP proejcts
- Developing a communication plan and executing it to educate and onboard DIP Team to the new operating model
- Design management of a number of consultants, managing RFIs, technical scope development and day-to-day contract management
- Developing a strategic procurement strategy that manages the program and project risk and ensure value for money outcomes for the client
- Stakeholder Engagement, including relevant Shareholding Minister Departments, Local Governments, residents, and businesses
- Project Controls - scheduling, budget control, risk management and reporting
- Investigating all necessary statutory approvals and working through the approval pathways
- Delivering the project in line with Seqwater's project governance requirements
- Commercial and contract management across a variety of engagements with Tier One consultants and contractors.
KEY ACHIEVEMENTS
- Although there were significant time constraints for delivery, whilst still in the early planning phase opportunities to undertake works in parallel were investigated to minimise activities in later stages, eg undertake non-sacrificial work in the early planning phase that is required in future phases of delivery
- Completed three Business Cases receiving amber and amber/green ratings
- Secured over $1 billion of investment approval from government, signalling to the market the projects were funded and approved for delivery
- Development of delivery strategy that leveraged previous procurement activities, whilst adjusting the commercial model to reflect current market appetite and project risk changes, leading to contract award in a short period of time
- Planning, execution and management of three construction contracts of varying commercial models across three dam locations
- Our CPM team members integrated into the Seqwater team, collaborating and sharing learnings across all stakeholders
- Development of DIP Operating Model and supporting artefacts, a first-of-its-kind program-level operating model for a large capital delivery program within Seqwater
- Developed a first-of-its-kind, fit-for-purpose funding approach that allowed quicker turnaround on funding approvals especially for the Early Works opportunity.
RELATED PROJECTS
Cressbrook Dam
Toowoomba Regional Council’s Cressbrook Dam was upgraded to meet the requirements of the Guidelines of Acceptable Flood Capacity (AFC) for Dams (ANCOLD 2000) to improve the dam’s ability to withstand extreme events.