The Wave railway has moved into focus in Queensland. ACCIONA has secured a major role in the project, which is tied to preparations for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The Wave railway: ACCIONA wins Queensland work
The Wave railway: ACCIONA wins Queensland work

The company will carry out the contract through the CoastalTraX consortium, selected to design and build one of the two major first phases of the Queensland rail project. The scheme forms part of the wider Brisbane 2032 rail infrastructure program and is intended to improve transport links in one of Queensland’s fastest-growing coastal regions.

The Wave railway and the Beerwah-Caloundra link

The awarded package includes 19 kilometers of double track between Beerwah and Caloundra. This section will strengthen the Sunshine Coast rail connection and support further residential development in south-east Queensland, where population growth continues to put pressure on transport networks.

ACCIONA will deliver the project with Georgiou, Aurecon and Mott MacDonald, while DT Infrastructure will work as the specialist rail subcontractor. The consortium’s remit goes beyond the railway itself, covering park-and-ride facilities, passenger pick-up areas, bicycle parking, bus stops, paths, and links into the surrounding local network.

The same package also covers a new public park, “Aura Central”, next to Bells Creek (Aura) station. It will include sports facilities and recreational areas, and several nearby local roads will be upgraded as part of the works.

Pre-construction works are planned for this year. They include geotechnical investigations, topographical surveys and other preparatory tasks, with the start of main works estimated for mid-2027.

Why the Sunshine Coast rail connection matters?

The Sunshine Coast is one of the fastest-growing areas in south-east Queensland, but it is still the largest urban area in Australia without a direct rail link to the nearest capital city. The Wave railway is intended to help close that gap by improving local and regional connectivity.

For passengers, the project is designed to offer a more reliable and efficient alternative to car travel. During rush hours, the new rail connection could cut journey times by more than 45 minutes, which makes the Beerwah to Caloundra rail link a notable mobility upgrade for the region.

Phases 1 and 2 of the project will run from Beerwah to Birtinya. According to Queensland’s Department of Transport and Main Roads, The Wave – Stages 1 and 2 will pass through Bells Creek (Aura), Caloundra and Aroona, giving the corridor a stronger public transport backbone as growth continues along the Sunshine Coast.

ACCIONA expands its Australian rail portfolio

The new Queensland contract adds another project to ACCIONA’s Australian transport portfolio. The company already has a strong position in the country’s major infrastructure market, with work across rail, roads, water and energy.

At the end of last year, ACCIONA was selected as part of the ActivUs consortium to design and build the main package of the Logan and Gold Coast Faster Rail project. That scheme is valued at €3.4 billion, or AUD 5.75 billion, and aims to improve the efficiency and frequency of public transport between Brisbane and its coastal area.

ACCIONA was also chosen last year by the government of Western Australia to build the Clean Energy Link – North electricity transmission line. The AU$342 million, or €192 million, project will help supply customers with 400MW of existing wind power and support the connection of an additional 1GW of new renewable energy.

The company also has a major energy role through its work with Genus for Transgrid, the public grid operator for New South Wales. Together, they were selected to build the eastern section of the HumeLink power transmission line, an AU$1.4 billion, or €850 million, project ranked among the largest energy infrastructure schemes in Australia.

A key market built over two decades

ACCIONA has operated in Australia since 2002. Over that period, it has become one of the country’s leading infrastructure companies, with major contracts across water, transport, energy and urban infrastructure.

One of its flagship Australian projects came in 2009, when the company was awarded the Adelaide desalination plant. The facility has a capacity of 300,000 m³ per day and was designed to serve two million people. It was the first facility of this kind in Australia and incorporated advanced pre-treatment technology to improve energy efficiency and increase the recovery of treated water for human consumption.

In 2011, ACCIONA won a contract in Western Australia for the Mundaring drinking water treatment plant. Its role covered design, construction, operation and maintenance, while the plant supplies water to Goldfields, one of the state’s nine regions.

More recently, ACCIONA was selected to design, build, operate and maintain the Alkimos (ASDP) desalination plant in Perth for ten years. The plant forms part of a wider AU$2.8 billion, or €1.72 billion, infrastructure program intended to secure drinking water supply for millions of people in the region.

The company also has a strong position in major rail and road works. In Melbourne, ACCIONA is building tunnels for the AU$3.6 billion, or €2.2 billion, Suburban Rail Loop East project, which is intended to transform the city’s public transport network, manage urban growth and reduce road traffic.

Another major contract is the Western Harbour Tunnel, valued at AU$4.24 billion, or €2.75 billion. It is the largest construction contract in ACCIONA’s history.

ACCIONA’s Australian portfolio also includes the runway at the new Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport, works on the central section of Sydney Metro West, and continued involvement in the removal of railway level crossings in Melbourne. Sydney Metro West is the new underground railway running through much of Australia’s largest city.