Council eager to get Beaver 30 dredging Swansea channel for permanent fix

Port Macquarie-based company Birdon Pty Ltd will provide a 12-metre vessel known as a Beaver 30 to begin the sand-dredging by May or June 2026.

The $7.4 million infrastructure tender was financed by the $10m federal government grant committed at the 2022 election and delivered last November.

The NSW government also tipped in $6m in funding for Transport for NSW to operate and maintain the permanent dredge and pipeline, which will transfer sand out of the Swansea Channel and pump it onto Blacksmiths Beach until at least 2031.

The council will oversee the delivery of the dredge and installation of the sand transfer system before handing over the ownership and operation to the state government's Transport for NSW.

"We're there for the delivery of it, but the NSW government will own and operate it," Lake Macquarie mayor Adam Shultz said.

"We're not in the dredging business, but it will provide people with confidence that they can come into and out of the lake, which should enhance tourism and different opportunities for the city.

"It's been a long time coming and I'm really looking forward to it."

The Beaver 30 will be built in the Netherlands and then transferred to Lake Macquarie next year.

Birdon has been a dredging contractor for almost 50 years and boasts the federal government, the Australian Army, Port Authority of NSW and the Port of Newcastle as clients.

The Beaver 30 will have the capacity to pump at least 1000 cubic metres of sand a day, with typical dredging campaigns expected to remove about 20,000 cubic metres over a four- to six-week period.

Larger campaigns may also be required to remove up to 120,000 cubic metres.

Cr Shultz said the manoeuvrability of the Beaver 30 meant that Transport NSW could use the dredge in other areas when required.

"It might be needed for a four-week campaign and then not again for 12 weeks," he said.

"They have the capacity as the owner to take it to the Central Coast or Port Stephens, or where they need it.

"The idea is to make sure there's a guarantee that its home is at Swansea Channel, but it will have capacity to go elsewhere and do what they need to do."

Birdon executive general manager of environment, Jim Cole, said the Beaver 30 sand dredges had been used effectively across Australia.

"The Beaver 30 is a highly efficient, low-cost suction dredge that combines powerful single-engine performance with advanced fuel and maintenance savings," Mr Cole said.

"Its remote monitoring capabilities mean operators can track performance in real-time, ensuring reliability and responsiveness."