The cost of a major infrastructure project in Victoria, Australia, is set to be paused after new figures showed costs for part of the project had ballooned by an extra $16 billion. The first two stages of the project are now blowing out the cost of the entire project to $216 billion, according to figures released from the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO). Opposition Leader John Pesutto called for the project to be paused, citing the need to address other urgent needs across the state.
The PBO's report is an update to their 2022 analysis commissioned by the opposition. Before the 2018 election, the project was estimated to cost $50 billion. Energy and Resources Minister Lily D'Ambrosio criticized the focus on running costs and claimed the opposition was looking at the wrong figures