Australia’s 2025–26 Federal Budget allocates A$17.1 billion to transport infrastructure, with a significant portion directed to regional projects (Department of Infrastructure).
For excavation contractors, this represents a multi-year pipeline of site preparation, trenching, and earthmoving work.
Demand will be especially strong for:
- Bulk earthworks on road and rail corridors
- Detailed excavation for bridge abutments and utilities
- Tunnel excavation for major motorway upgrades
- Marine infrastructure foundation works
With a track record in both civil and infrastructure excavation, Orbs Excavations is positioned to deliver across these work types.
Cairns Marine
The Cairns Marine Precinct upgrade — co-funded by the Queensland and Australian Governments (A$150 million each) — will deliver a 5,000-tonne shiplift, new wharfage, and large hardstand areas (State Development QLD).
Excavation impact:
- Deep foundation excavation to accommodate heavy marine engineering loads.
- Subgrade preparation with engineered fill for load-bearing hardstand.
- Trenching for marine services including stormwater, high-voltage cabling, and fire suppression systems.
Local context: Coastal geology in Cairns includes soft alluvial soils and high groundwater tables, meaning dewatering and soil stabilisation will be critical before structural works.
Orbs Excavations’ precision grading and compaction systems are ideally suited for tolerance-critical marine projects.
Coomera Connector
Stage 1 of the Coomera Connector — a 16 km, four-lane transport corridor between Nerang and Coomera — is valued at A$3 billion, with funding shared between the Queensland and Australian Governments (Infrastructure Investment Program).
Excavation impact:
- Bulk cut-and-fill operations to create the mainline formation.
- Preload embankments for soft soil stabilisation in flood-prone areas.
- Hard-rock excavation at bridge approaches and interchanges.
Technical note: These works require GPS-controlled plant for formation accuracy and compaction verification to Transport and Main Roads (TMR) standards. Orbs Excavations can provide early works mobilisation to meet program-critical milestones.
Torrens Darlington
The Torrens to Darlington (T2D) motorway and tunnel project in Adelaide — valued at A$15.4 billion — will create a 10.5 km non-stop motorway, including twin tunnels (The Industrialist).
Excavation impact:
- Portal box cuts for tunnel entry and exit points.
- Deep excavation for cut-and-cover tunnel sections.
- Large-scale spoil management for continuous tunnel boring operations.
Technical challenges: Tunnel excavation in Adelaide’s geology involves hard rock and mixed ground conditions, requiring precision-controlled excavation and environmental management for spoil haulage and dust suppression. Orbs Excavations’ safety compliance systems align with these complex, high-risk works.
Rail Upgrades
Victoria’s Regional Rail Revival program — a A$1.8 billion joint investment — is upgrading multiple key corridors including Ballarat, Bendigo, and Gippsland (Regional Rail Revival).
Excavation impact:
- Trackbed excavation and subgrade stabilisation.
- Drainage trenching to improve line reliability in wet conditions.
- Embankment shaping for realignment and passing loop upgrades.
Logistics advantage: Multi-site upgrades require rapid mobilisation, which Orbs Excavations can deliver through its modular fleet allocation model, ensuring teams and machinery can move between sites quickly without extended downtime.
Industry Position
With this unprecedented level of public infrastructure investment, Orbs Excavations offers:
- Proven government and commercial project delivery history.
- GPS-guided and laser-controlled earthmoving capability.
- Compliance with WHS, environmental, and traffic management regulations.
- Rapid mobilisation for early works and critical path excavation packages.
Government-backed infrastructure projects in 2025 are creating sustained demand for excavation services across regional Australia. From Cairns’ marine precinct to Adelaide’s tunnel works, the opportunity is clear — contractors with the right capability, compliance credentials, and readiness will secure the lion’s share of work.
Orbs Excavations is ready to partner on these projects, delivering precise, efficient, and safe excavation for Australia’s next generation of transport and marine assets.