Queensland Government (Australia) has announced the shortlist for the Toowoomba's Second Range Crossing (TSRC) PPP project.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Warren Truss said three consortia have been selected to progress to the Request for Proposal stage of the project. Mr Truss stated:

It's a pleasure to announce that, from a strong industry response to the Expressions of Interest proponents, Range Connect, RangeLink and Nexus have been shortlisted.

Specifically the shortlisted consortia are the following:

• Range Connect: Leighton Contractors, Thiess, Macquarie Capital (Australia), Leighton Holdings, Leighton Contractor Investment Partners and Aberdeen Infrastructure Funds.

• RangeLink: Bouygues Construction Australia, Fulton Hogan Construction, Wagners Quarries, Meridiam RangeLink, Fulton Hogan Industries and Egis Projects Asia Pacific.

• Nexus: Plenary Group, Acciona Infrastructure Australia, Samsung C&T Corporation, Acciona Concesiones and Transfield Services (Australia).

Interest in the project has been strong, with more than 60 consortia and individual companies participating in the Registration of Interest phase earlier in the year. Proponents shortlisted at the end of the EOI phase will be invited to submit a detailed proposal during the next phase of the procurement process, the Request for Proposals. The shortlisted bidders have until early 2015 to submit their detailed proposals.

The TSRC is a bypass route to the north of Toowoomba, approximately 41km in length, running from the Warrego Highway at Helidon in the east to the Gore Highway at Athol in the west via Charlton. The project is the largest Commonwealth Government commitment to a single regional road project in Queensland history.

The project involves the design, build, finance, operation and maintenance of the new bypass route.

The total project investment is estimated at A$1.6 billion (US$1466 million). Queensland Treasurer had allocated A$321.25 million to the project in 2014-15 budget.

Toowoomba is a city in South-East Queensland, Australia. It is located 127 km (79 mi) west of Queensland's capital city, Brisbane. Toowoomba plays a role in Queensland's transport network by acting as a hub for the Darling Downs and a gateway to the developing energy sector in the Surat Basin.

The project will provide an alternative range crossing for the increasing traffic volumes that are putting pressure on the highway network that passes through Toowoomba and over the Toowoomba Range.