Financial sustainability in focus
Council services over 5,037 water consumers in 10 communities , with infrastructure assets valued at $ 46.189 million as at 30 June 2020 .
The key challenges in managing this significant infrastructure asset and essential service are :
• Although the infrastructure as a whole has a long life it has been constructed and added to each financial year over many decades . Therefore at any point in time , the infrastructure ’ s component parts are at different stages of their useful lives .
• The estimated life for various components of the infrastructure assets have widely varying estimated useful lives ranging from 6 years to 210 years .
• The condition of infrastructure assets at any point in time can vary - for example , it can be dependant on construction materials which perform differently over time .
• As the infrastructure ages there are more faults or failures ( requiring more maintenance to keep operational ), therefore it is important that the infrastructure is renewed ( replaced ) in a timely manner to minimise the risk of further service interruptions .
Our plans for 2021 / 22
• As the infrastructure is underground , we rely on a number of indicators of condition prior to making additional investment decisions - number of breaks , visual inspection of pipes during repairs , industry expectation of various material types and criticality of the service ( e . g . servicing school or hospital ),
• Given the large geographic area for the Maranoa region , and number of rural properties , not all ratepayers are connected to the town water network ( i . e . the number of consumers is smaller than the total number of ratepayers ).
• The Maranoa region provides water to 8 small communities separated by long distances , in addition to Roma and Mitchell . Therefore there are not always sufficient consumers to ensure that individual town services can be provided without subsidisation .
Unlike large urban areas with many consumers , providing this essential service in regional , rural communities is costly on a per capita basis . With limited revenue available , Council by necessity needs to ensure that the limited dollars available are invested wisely .
Planning for long term infrastructure is therefore done over a longer term including : - asset management plan ( 10 years ); - long term financial forecast ( 10 years );
Looking forward
We plan for the future using the following principles :
• Priority for use of any available water revenue ( after operating costs ) is on looking after what we ’ ve got first - i . e . renewing / replacing existing infrastructure when needed .
• When infrastructure is renewed , the capacity of the mains will also be increased where there is a projected growth in demand .
• When long term planning is undertaken , projects will be considered that reduce identified operational risks over the current and longer term ( for new or upgrade works ). This will be incorporated in Council ’ s : - asset management plan ( 10 years ); - long term financial forecast ( 10 years );
• Where possible , renewal works will be funded through water charges , and new or upgrade works will be funded from external funding ( e . g . infrastructure charges ).
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