In a move to support its ‘Rebuilding the Economy’ agenda, the Northern Territory’s Country Liberal Party has enacted new legislation in what it’s calling the Territory's "most important piece of economic reform" in a decade.
The Territory Coordinator Act 2025 (NT) (the Act), which commenced on 31 March 2025, establishes the role of the Territory Coordinator and provides both the Territory Coordinator and the Minister for Territory Coordinator (Minister) a suite of powers to streamline regulatory processes for projects and developments vital to the Territory's economy.
This new statutory role is a key component of the Government’s economic reform agenda, drawing inspiration from Queensland’s Coordinator-General model and similar regimes in South Australia, New South Wales, and Western Australia.
The goal is simple: to transform how significant projects and private investments are managed in the Territory by driving strategic coordination and eliminating development barriers. Through the Territory Coordinator, the Act aims to fast-track major investments, streamline government approvals, and boost the Territory's competitiveness, attracting large-scale investments to fuel economic growth.
How did we get here?
The Northern Territory Government has been focused on growing its own-source revenue. With the highest net debt per capita of any Australian jurisdiction, the hope is that, through streamlining the approvals process, the Territory can attract and facilitate major private investment.
Industry stakeholders have generally supported the creation of the Territory Coordinator, viewing it as a commitment to fostering investment and addressing barriers to large-scale projects. Most stakeholders were in favour of the Act’s goal to improve efficiency and certainty in approvals.
However, the passing of the Act has not been without controversy. The Consultation Report on the Draft Territory Coordinator Bill revealed a mixed response to its intent and primary principles, with some emphasising the need to maintain social license, cultural values, and environmental safeguards. While there was broad support for streamlining regulatory processes and boosting the Territory’s economy, opposition emerged regarding the broad powers granted to the Territory Coordinator and the responsible Minister, with concerns raised about potential impacts on indigenous land rights and fast-track gas exploration.
In the end, the Northern Territory Government emphasised the need for a “balanced approach that aligns economic growth with social and environmental outcomes.”
Functions of the Territory Coordinator
The Territory Coordinator will play a central role in the successful delivery of significant projects and development initiatives across the Territory. Key responsibilities include:
- Assessing and Coordinating Projects: The Territory Coordinator will be responsible for assessing, facilitating, and coordinating major projects to ensure they meet key objectives and timelines, helping keep these developments on track from start to finish.
- Identifying and Recommending Projects: The Territory Coordinator will identify potential projects or works that could qualify as “significant” and provide recommendations to the Minister for further action, playing a crucial role in shaping future development.
- Designating Infrastructure Coordination and Development Areas: The Territory Coordinator will investigate areas within the Territory that may be suitable for designation as Infrastructure Coordination Areas (ICAs) for significant projects, or Territory Development Areas (TDAs) for other projects more broadly, advising the Minister on appropriate actions to develop these areas.
- Overseeing Plans and Activities: The Territory Coordinator will prepare and oversee the implementation of Infrastructure Coordination Plans (ICPs), Infrastructure Coordination (IC) activities, Program of Works, and TDA plans, ensuring these plans align with the Territory’s development objectives.
- Facilitating Stakeholder Collaboration: A key part of the Territory Coordinator’s role will be to facilitate collaboration between various stakeholders, including project proponents, the Territory government, local communities, traditional owners, native title holders, and Land Councils. This ensures that significant projects are delivered with proper coordination and broad support.
Key powers under the Act
The Act introduces a range of new powers for the Territory Coordinator and the Minister that raise both opportunities and uncertainties regarding their implementation. At its core, the Act focuses on advancing economic development in the Northern Territory, with the Minister and the Territory Coordinator dedicated to fostering growth. However, this emphasis on economic progress is balanced with a responsibility to consider the social and environmental impacts of their decisions. The Act aims to align economic growth with sustainable and responsible development, ensuring that growth benefits both communities and the environment.
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Key Powers
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Additional Guidance
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Example
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The Minister has the authority to designate a project as "significant" based on its economic importance, complexity, and regional impact. |
A project is considered economically significant if it attracts private investment, generates jobs, stimulates population growth, or promotes industry development. While additional criteria may be introduced through future regulations, none are currently defined. Once a project is designated as significant, its status remains in place until the Minister revokes it. This designation allows the Territory Coordinator and Minister to fast-track statutory processes, expediting the project’s delivery. |
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The Minister has the authority to declare an ICA for a significant project. |
An ICA designates a specific land or water area to assess its suitability for an ICP. The declaration must specify the associated project, proposed infrastructure, and the area’s boundaries. The Minister can modify or revoke the ICA boundaries, adjusting the area under assessment as needed. |
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The Minister has the authority to approve an ICP for a significant project. |
The ICP is a crucial tool that will outline how the project will be carried out and governs future activities within the ICA. The ICP includes:
The Territory Coordinator has the power to accelerate infrastructure delivery by ensuring the ICP aligns with the significant project’s construction or operational timelines. The ICP may also coordinate infrastructure partially delivered by private entities. For example, as outlined in the Explanatory Memorandum, a solar energy project might involve public entities delivering components like substations, while private proponents manage the delivery of power lines and transmission infrastructure. |
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Minister is granted the authority to approve a Program of Works |
The Minister can designate areas of land or water as TDAs if they offer economic development potential or support significant infrastructure. TDAs are particularly suited for industrial or agricultural development, or enabling infrastructure, that would benefit from coordinated master planning. The TDA plan outlines proposed activities, land uses, required infrastructure, land acquisition, and governance frameworks. Any development that deviates from the plan requires the Territory Coordinator's consent. The Territory Coordinator is responsible for overseeing the development of TDA plans and must be consulted on applications within TDA areas that do not have an active plan. Once drafted, the TDA plan is submitted to the Minister for approval. |
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Grants the Territory Coordinator and Minister the authority to issue requests to responsible entities to prioritise, progress, or make decisions on statutory processes under “Scheduled laws”. |
Once a significant project, Program of Works, or TDA is designated, the Territory Coordinator and Minister can expedite approvals through specific requests and notices for these projects or activities.
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Grants the Territory Coordinator and Minister the power to issue a step-in notice, allowing them to take over as the decision-maker for a specific statutory process or decision |
The Territory Coordinator can issue a step-in notice to a responsible entity and applicant involved in a statutory decision or process related to a significant project, works project, IC activity, or TDA activity, assuming responsibility until the process is completed. Before issuing the notice, the Territory Coordinator must consult with the responsible entity. Once issued, the step-in notice means:
Any decision made by the Territory Coordinator, including any conditions, is considered the original entity's decision, and the entity remains responsible for enforcing it. |
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Grants the Minister the power to issue an exemption notice, allowing modifications or exclusions to the application of a "Scheduled law" on specific grounds. |
Exemption notices enable the Minister to alter or exclude certain laws for statutory decisions or processes related to significant projects, works projects, IC activities, or TDA activities. The Territory Coordinator can recommend an exemption, and the Minister may issue it based on this recommendation or their own assessment. These notices are intended to be used sparingly, typically in cases where a step-in notice has already been given and:
Exemption notices are not intended to bypass compliance or enforcement processes. Once issued, the Minister must table the notice in the Legislative Assembly during the next sitting. The Assembly has three days to disallow the notice, meaning the exemption is not final until after this period. |
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It should be noted that a person is not entitled to apply for a review of, or appeal against, any decision made under the Act, however a person’s right to seek judicial review of a decision remains unaffected.
What’s Next?
The introduction of the Territory Coordinator through the Territory Coordinator Act 2025 represents a significant shift in how major projects are delivered in the Northern Territory. However, the full impact of these changes is still unfolding.
While the Act establishes a streamlined framework designed to accelerate the construction of key projects by simplifying development assessments and decision-making processes, there is still much work to be done to fully implement the Act, particularly in drafting the supporting regulations that will guide these new powers and processes.
As the Act begins to shape the Territory’s development landscape, it is expected to remain a central topic of discussion. Developers and stakeholders should stay updated on these changes and evaluate how the Act may affect both current and future projects.
