Verbrec Lands Staged $21m McArthur River Pipeline Contract from PWC

What Changed Today

Verbrec (ASX: VBC) has secured a contract valued at approximately $21 million from Power and Water Corporation (PWC) to deliver the McArthur River Pipeline Bi-Directional Upgrade Project in the Northern Territory, with work planned to run in stages through to 2028.

The award is significant because it adds a new contracted package to Verbrec’s existing work base, while also tying the company to infrastructure intended to support first commercial gas from the Beetaloo sub-basin.

Verbrec said the contract is structured as separable portions aligned to Stage 1 and Stage 2, which means revenue recognition and earnings contribution are likely to depend on how each phase progresses.

The company did not disclose a value split between those stages, nor did it provide margin details.

The customer is PWC, the NT government-owned utility, which places the project within a public infrastructure framework. Verbrec also said it has managed the McArthur River Pipeline for more than 10 years for PWC, framing the award as an extension of an established client relationship.

The contract arrives after Verbrec previously reported work in hand of $71 million and an opportunity pipeline of $203 million at 31 December 2025, adding another defined piece of delivery work rather than simply broadening the prospect pipeline.

Pipeline and Project Backdrop

The asset at the centre of the award is the McArthur River Pipeline, with new infrastructure to be delivered at Daly Waters in the Northern Territory.

The upgrade is intended to make the pipeline bi-directional, meaning the network is being configured to handle gas movement in more than one direction as capacity and connection points are expanded.

Targeted for completion in 2026, Stage 1 is intended to enable gas delivery into the McArthur River Pipeline to backfill supply to the McArthur River Mine.

Stage 2, targeted for 2028, is planned to add additional production capacity, including reverse gas flow into the Amadeus Gas Pipeline at Daly Waters.

The project objective is to help enable first commercial gas from the Beetaloo sub-basin while supporting Northern Territory gas supply security.

The award also sits squarely within Verbrec’s stated operating mix.

In its FY2025 Annual Report, the company described engineering services, asset management and operations and maintenance as its core earnings drivers, and said the gas market transition sector was expected to remain a primary source of revenue in FY2026.

Scope, Numbers and Timing

The disclosed contract value is approximately $21 million, with no breakdown provided for Stage 1 versus Stage 2.

Its scope covers design, procurement, fabrication, installation, commissioning, and handover.

The infrastructure package includes a new third-party connection, pressure reduction skid, metering facilities and a new gas compression facility at Daly Waters.

The staged delivery profile is relevant against Verbrec’s broader company backdrop.

In February 2026, the company guided to FY2026 continuing operations revenue of $110 million to $120 million and continuing operations EBITDA of $8 million to $10 million.

In its H1 FY2026 presentation, Verbrec also reported net cash of $11.6 million.

Those figures provide some context around capacity and balance sheet support, but they do not answer project-level questions around margin, cash conversion or working capital intensity for the McArthur River Pipeline contract itself.

What to Watch Next

The first key milestone is Stage 1 delivery, with a target completion date in 2026.

Future updates will matter less for headline contract value, which is already known, and more for whether procurement, installation, and commissioning are progressing on schedule.

There is also a broader execution lens, with revenue timing and margin sensitive to delivery across two separated stages and commissioning milestones.

On the regulatory side, the contract award itself reflects an approved procurement pathway through PWC, but the wider objective of enabling first commercial gas from the Beetaloo sub-basin remains dependent on the practical readiness of connected infrastructure and project sequencing.

Backlog Boost, Delivery Still Matters

Verbrec’s McArthur River Pipeline award adds a material piece of Northern Territory gas infrastructure work and extends delivery visibility through 2028.

The contract also reinforces the company’s relationship with PWC and its positioning in gas transition services, but the filing leaves open key questions around phase-by-phase revenue, margins and the practical timing of execution.

Investors will be looking to see whether this contract feeds into updated commentary on work in hand, particularly as Verbrec continues integrating recent growth initiatives including the Alliance Automation acquisition flagged in earlier FY2026 disclosures.