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  3. Forestry
  4. Australia's forest and forest products industries
  5. Support Plantation Establishment program

Sidebar first - Forestry

  • Australia's forest and forest products industries
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    • Support Plantation Establishment program

Support Plantation Establishment program

Round 3 grant applications are now open – Batch 4 closes 17 July

You can submit an application and access grant materials for the program on GrantConnect. The grant materials include the program's Grant Opportunity Guidelines, Question and Answer documents, and other important guidance information.

The Australian Government is providing $73.76 million (GST exclusive) in grant funding over four years from 2023–24 to 2026–27.

To date, $28.52 million (GST exclusive) has been awarded to 46 projects. Funding of $45.24 million (GST exclusive) remains available for Round 3.

The funding supports the establishment of new long-rotation softwood and hardwood plantation forests in Australia and assists the sector in responding to the projected growth in demand for domestically sourced timber resources.

The objectives of the program are to:

  • increase future plantation forest resources available for processing, as well as for plantation forest management, harvesting and haulage employment
  • support private industry, First Nations businesses, farm foresters and state and territory government forestry bodies to expand the Australian plantation forest estate
  • contribute to meeting Australia’s carbon emission reduction targets, including under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and the Kyoto Protocol to the Climate Change Convention.

Funding of $2,000 (GST exclusive) per hectare of new long-rotation plantation forest established will be provided to successful grantees.

  • The minimum grant amount is $40,000 (GST exclusive).
  • There is no maximum grant amount, provided grant funding is available.

The grants require applicants to provide a co-contribution at least equal to the grant amount and are open to private industry, First Nations businesses, farm foresters and state and territory government forestry bodies.

Further details about the Support Plantation Establishment program are outlined in the Round 3 Grant Opportunity Guidelines, available on GrantConnect.

Case studies

The stories of the grantees and their projects that will deliver Australia’s future forest products.

Explore our case studies.

Watch

See how the program is supporting grantees to establish new plantations across Australia.

Plantation Pine Products Support Plantation Establishment Program case study

(Duration 1 mins 46 secs)

Introduction

This is the transcript of a video case study produced by the Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry as part of the Support Plantation Establishment Program. It was filmed with Plantation Pine Products on-site in Oberon, NSW in 2024.

Transcript

Video begins [0:00]

Music plays

Text appears on screen: 

The Support Plantation Establishment Program is a $73.76 million Australian Government Grant Program

The funding supports the establishment of new long-rotation softwood and hardwood plantation forests across Australia

[0:11]

Text changes on screen: 

Plantation Pine Products were awarded $7.04 million in funding to support the establishment of 3,520 hectares of new plantation forests

Angus Spreckley: This plantation was planted in August this year with Pinus Radiata at 1,600 stems a hectare.

It will be 30 meter tall trees, probably about 600 stems a hectare. This will be thinned twice, down to about 600 stems a hectare during the rotation.

Areas around Oberon have 800mm of rainfall, so the cooler temperatures in summer, plenty of rainfall in winter, so it’s good growing conditions for pine trees.

The high up-front costs of forestry plantations is a challenge. Reducing that up-front cost which is what the grant does makes it significantly more palatable to plant trees.

If you own the land and your only cost is establishment and you can get that just for minor costs, it reduces all of the hurdles for a farmer to plant a bad paddock into pines.

So you’ll have structural grade lumber for your framing of your house, you’ll have MDF, or medium density fibreboard and particleboard used for kitchen cupboards, kitchen benches.

Here with the sawmills only taking Radiata, we’re pretty keen to enter partnerships with farmers. We’ll establish the trees with you, we’ll manage and harvest on your behalf and take the wood to market. We need lots of logs.

[1:35]

Music plays

Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry logo appears on screen

Text appears on screen:

Applications are open for grant round three of the Support Plantation Establishment program.

Find out more and apply at GrantConnect.

[1:46]

Video ends

Applications

Grant applications for Round 3 opened on 11 October 2024 and will close on 5 November 2025. Round 3 is made up of 6 batches.

  • Batch 1 will be open from 11 October 2024 to 13 November 2024.
  • Batch 2 will be open from 13 November 2024 to 11 February 2025.
  • Batch 3 will be open from 11 February 2025 to 8 May 2025.
  • Batch 4 will be open from 8 May 2025 to 17 July 2025.
  • Batch 5 will be open from 17 July 2025 to 24 September 2025.
  • Batch 6 will be open from 24 September 2025 to 5 November 2025.

Rounds 1 and 2 of the program ran from 21 June 2023 to 24 January 2024 and 9 February 2024 to 27 June 2024 respectively.

Successful applicants to date

To date, $28.52 million (GST exclusive) has been awarded to 46 projects. Funding of $45.24 million (GST exclusive) remains available for Round 3.

Grant applications for Round 1 opened on 21 June 2023 and closed on 24 January 2024.

Round FundedFunding RecipientProject detailsFunding (GST Exclusive)Region
Round 1Plantation Pine Products Australia Pty LtdSoftwood 
308 hectares
$616,000.00NSW
Round 1Tamplin Family TrustHardwood 
86 hectares
$172,000.00NSW
Round 1Tasmanian Carbon Afforestation Sub-TrustHardwood
60 hectares
$120,000.00TAS
Round 1Napier Family TrustSoftwood
84 hectares
$168,000.00TAS
Round 1Plantation Pine Products Australia Pty LtdSoftwood
935 hectares
$1,870,000.00NSW
Round 1A.C Fisher & S.J FisherSoftwood
86 hectares
$172,000.00TAS
Round 1A Biskaps & S.J BiskapsHardwood
46 hectares
$92,000.00QLD
Round 1F Hildebrand & L.M HoltHardwood
22.5 hectares
$44,820.00VIC
Round 1Plantation Pine Products Australia Pty LtdSoftwood
606 hectares
$1,212,000.00NSW
Round 1J & S ThompsonSoftwood
402 hectares
$804,000.00NSW
Round 1Wespine Industries Pty LtdSoftwood
31.9 hectares
$63,800.00WA
Round 1H.H Mackinnon & H.H Mackinnon & R.A MackinnonSoftwood
72.8 hectares
$145,600.00VIC
Round 1Sapphire Forests Pty LtdHardwood
27.5 hectares
$55,000.00NSW
Round 1Salmon Marketing TrustSoftwood
401 hectares
$802,000.00TAS
Round 1Stephen Creese Family Trust No.2Softwood
50 hectares
$94,850.00TAS
Round 1Morgan Sawmill Jamestown Pty LtdSoftwood
455.87 hectares
$911,740.00SA
Round 1Forestry Corporation of New South WalesSoftwood
465 hectares
$930,000.00NSW
Round 1Forestry Corporation of New South WalesSoftwood
660 hectares
$1,320,000.00NSW
Round 1Miles, Robert WilliamSoftwood
204 hectares
$408,000.00NSW

Grant applications for Round 2 opened on 9 February 2024 and closed on 27 June 2024.

Round FundedFunding RecipientProject detailsFunding (GST Exclusive)Region
Round 2Forestry Investment TrustSoftwood
214.1 hectares
$66,371.00WA
Round 2Tasmanian Carbon Afforestation Sub-TrustSoftwood
154 hectares
$211,765.00TAS
Round 2G 5 Forestry Pty LtdSoftwood
650 hectares
$1,300,000.00NSW
Round 2Mitsui & Co. Wood Resources Oceania Pty. Ltd.Softwood
260.5 hectares
$258,698.58WA
Round 2SFA Nature Based Solutions Unit TrustSoftwood
89 hectares
$178,000.00VIC
Round 2Plantation Pine Products Australia Pty LtdSoftwood
1671 hectares
$3,342,000.00NSW, VIC
Round 2Forestry Corporation of New South WalesSoftwood
116 hectares
$208,800.00NSW
Round 2Forestry Corporation of New South WalesSoftwood
40.38 hectares
$81,160.00NSW

Grant applications for Round 3 opened on 11 October 2024 and will close on 5 November 2025.

Round FundedFunding RecipientProject detailsFunding (GST Exclusive)Region
Round 3JMS Colless Investments Pty LtdSoftwood
40 hectares
$80,000.00VIC
Round 3Forestry TasmaniaSoftwood
475 hectares
$950,000.00TAS
Round 3Chelimi Pty LtdHardwood
21 hectares
$42,000.00VIC
Round 3H.A Bebb & E.G Hewitt & J Hewitt & A.J Stevens & V.R Stevens &The Trustee For Gr Gibson Discretionary Trust & The Trustee For The Liffey Trust & The Trustee For West Elk TrustSoftwood
188.49 hectares
$375,275.68TAS
Round 3Associated Kiln Driers Pty LtdSoftwood
54.3 hectares
$108,600.00NSW
Round 3The Trust Company (Australia) LtdSoftwood
424.6 hectares
$382,729.17VIC
Round 3The Trust Company (Australia) LtdSoftwood
147.2 hectares
$192,596.00WA
Round 3The Trust Company (Australia) LtdSoftwood
62 hectares
$123,752.00TAS
Round 3Mitsui & Co. Wood Resources Oceania Pty LtdSoftwood
958 hectares
$1,915,760.50WA
Round 3Morgan Sawmill Jamestown Pty LtdSoftwood
165.97 hectares
$331,940.00SA
Round 3Carbon Neutral Pty LtdHardwood
259.9 hectares
$519,749.91WA
Round 3Carbon Neutral Pty LtdSoftwood
679 hectares
$1,358,000.00WA
Round 3Milne Farming Pty LtdHardwood
123 hectares
$246,000.00VIC
Round 3Carbon Neutral Pty LtdHardwood
1928 hectares
$3,856,000.00NSW
Round 3Mitsui & Co. Wood Resources Oceania Pty. Ltd.Softwood
216.1 hectares
$432,200.00WA
Round 3Fairthorne Timber Trading Pty LtdSoftwood
56.1 hectares
$112,200.00VIC
Round 3The Trustee for Maxwell Family Trust & J.D Thompson & S.J ThompsonSoftwood
670 hectares
$1,340,000.00NSW
Round 3The Trust Company (Australia) LimitedSoftwood
196 hectares
$300,860.00TAS
Round 3The Trust Company (Australia) LimitedHardwood
91.4 hectares
$131,035.20TAS

 

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Page last updated: 06 May 2025

We acknowledge the continuous connection of First Nations Traditional Owners and Custodians to the lands, seas and waters of Australia. We recognise their care for and cultivation of Country. We pay respect to Elders past and present, and recognise their knowledge and contribution to the productivity, innovation and sustainability of Australia’s agriculture, fisheries and forestry industries.

Artwork: Protecting our Country, Growing our Future
© Amy Allerton, contemporary Aboriginal Artist of the Gumbaynggirr, Bundjalung and Gamilaroi nations.

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