The Pulse | 14 October 2026

Power to the State: NSW Lines Up Gas Peakers and Decides Who Approves Town Hall Square

This week's reporting traced NSW setting the terms for its next phase of power supply and for who decides major public works.

The Energy Minister announced a 1.5 gigawatt firming tender built around net energy contribution and supply lasting eight hours, now in consultation ahead of a 2027 launch, with a 2.5 gigawatt wind tender flagged for later this year [9]; Transgrid confirmed signed connections for 1.5 gigawatts of data centre load in western Sydney [8]; a $1.5 billion data centre at Wyong reached the scoping stage [12]; and the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces declared Town Hall Square to be State Significant Development on the Independent Planning Commission's advice [5, 6]. In the Land and Environment Court, a sunlight protection for Clementson Park prevailed over the affordable housing height and floor space bonus at Bondi Junction [10].

On housing and delivery, the reporting ran from completions to fit-out. NSW recorded 49,545 completions in 2025-26, its highest in five years [1]; State consents issued for 207 apartments at the former Corrimal Coke Works [11] and 44 in Paddington through the affordable housing pathway [2]; private investment in the Aerotropolis reached $34.6 billion as Bradfield City opened its Second Building to tenants [3]; and the eastern wing of Temora Hospital reached structural completion, with fit-out now under way [4]. On site conditions, SafeWork NSW opened a six-week psychosocial compliance operation, with construction leading the industries asking it for help [7].

Town Hall Square Moves to the State as Consents Land and a Sunlight Clause Holds

The Minister for Planning and Public Spaces declared the City of Sydney's proposed square opposite Sydney Town Hall to be State Significant Development (SSD) on 9 October 2026 under section 4.36 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, with the Independent Planning Commission to determine any SSD application the council lodges [5]. The Commission's advice, dated 2 October, describes 4,200 square metres of open space created by demolishing seven council-owned buildings, at an estimated development cost of about $94 million against a council budget of up to $150 million with contingency [6]. Not being a major recreation facility, the square fell outside the thresholds in State Environmental Planning Policy (Planning Systems) 2021, and the Commission pointed to its interfaces with metro, light and heavy rail, bus and road assets on three boundaries [6]. The council told the Commission it had not sought the call-in [6].

Apartments.com.au reported that Toohey Miller has development approval for Runway Residences, an $86 million, eight-storey Oxford Street building in Paddington with 44 apartments, 11 of them affordable, assessed by the State through the affordable housing SSDA pathway open to Greater Sydney proposals above $75 million with at least 10 per cent affordable housing [2]. At Bondi Junction, The Urban Developer reported on 13 October 2026 that Land and Environment Court Commissioner Shona Porter has dismissed the appeal against Waverley Council's refusal of a 12-storey scheme relying on the Housing State Environmental Planning Policy's (SEPP) height and floor space incentives, finding it would add shadow to Clementson Park and that a Waverley Local Environmental Plan clause protecting that sunlight could not be set aside [10]. As reported, the judgment states that "The DA must be refused on the basis of the current provisions of the WLEP" [10].

In the Illawarra, Urban Digest reported that a $109.6 million scheme of 207 apartments at 27 Railway Street, Corrimal, was approved through the State Significant Development pathway on 2 October 2026, under delegation from the Minister, by the Director, Housing Delivery Assessments [11]. Forming Stage 2A of the 18.2-hectare former Corrimal Coke Works renewal precinct beside Corrimal Railway Station, the consent covers 150 market and 57 affordable dwellings, the affordable homes grouped in one building and drawing on a pre-existing agreement with Wollongong City Council and on the Housing SEPP's Transport Oriented Development and in-fill affordable housing rules [11]. Conditions require changes to one building's upper balconies and facade to protect the heritage-listed Coke Works structures, and upper-level setbacks on another to limit shadow on the planned Southern Park [11]. The project snapshot it reproduces lists 350 construction jobs, with DKO Architecture as architect [11].

The Minister for Planning and Public Spaces reported on 7 October 2026 that, on the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures, 49,545 homes were completed in NSW in 2025-26, a rise of 16 per cent on the previous year and the most since 2020-21, against national growth of 2.8 per cent [1]. Commencements rose by more than 10 per cent to 51,807, a four-year high, and completions in the June quarter ran more than 40 per cent ahead of the same quarter a year earlier [1]. The release credits measures including the Transport Oriented Development program, the Low and Mid-rise Housing policy, the Infill Affordable Housing Scheme and the Housing Delivery Authority, and names high interest rates and rising material costs as continuing pressures [1].

A 1.5 Gigawatt Firming Tender Goes to Consultation as Western Sydney Data Centre Load Doubles

Energy Minister Penny Sharpe announced on 13 October 2026 a firming tender for 1.5 gigawatts of new capacity, aimed at a reliability gap forecast for 2033 to 2034 as the Bayswater and Vales Point coal plants retire, Renew Economy reported [9]. Three design criteria apply: a facility must add net energy rather than draw it from the grid, must be dispatchable, and must sustain supply for at least eight hours, which the publication noted rules out standalone batteries and pumped hydro [9]. ASL, the NSW Consumer Trustee, is consulting on the design, with the tender due in early 2027 and plant operating by 2033 [9]. Ms Sharpe said "gas peakers will have an important role to play in keeping the lights on", while ABB's Aaron Trueman told the publication that procuring turbines and finishing construction now takes about eight years [9].

Ms Sharpe also told the summit that a 2.5 gigawatt wind tender would come before the end of the year, and that operators covered by the State's data centre guidelines would need to buy 40 per cent of their power from wind under long-term power purchase agreements, Renew Economy reported [9]. The government statement it quoted put the growth in large-scale solar and wind operating in NSW at more than 80 per cent since March 2023, with installed storage up 39-fold and gas expected to supply about 3.9 per cent of the State's electricity by 2050, and the publication noted that ASL's documents treat hybrids pairing wind or solar with storage as eligible for the firming round, though better matched to the long-duration storage rounds already running [9].

On the demand side, the Herald Sun, carrying reporting from The Australian, recorded Transgrid's confirmation that it has signed connection agreements for 1.5 gigawatts of new data centre load in western Sydney, roughly doubling demand there [8]. The publication reported that Transgrid may pursue a plan to release up to 2 gigawatts more in western Sydney, with spare capacity also available in the Riverina and the Hunter, and that NSW Government figures from July put connection requests at up to 28 gigawatts, about 13 gigawatts of them in advanced discussions [8]. Data Centres Australia chief executive Belinda Dennett pointed to the "time gap between building a data centre, which takes 18 months to two years, and a renewable energy project that can take from four to seven years" [8]. This newsletter reported Transgrid's data centre demand modelling in its edition of 16 September 2026.

Further north, the Newcastle Herald reported on 14 October 2026 that a scoping report lodged for DCG Admin sets out a $1.5 billion, two-storey data centre on a 12.43-hectare site at 30 Lucca Road, Wyong, next to existing industrial development [12]. The State Significant Development proposal specifies dry air cooling that uses no water, which the report presents as meeting the NSW data centre guidelines, with total power use of about 150 megawatts and a target IT load of 96 megawatts [12]. Set in the North Wyong Industrial and Enterprise Precinct, the land is under a kilometre from Ausgrid's 132-kilovolt Wyong Zone Substation, a position the report says permits connection without any new transmission corridor [12]. The report argues the project would put industrial land intended for jobs to productive use on a flood-affected site with existing easements [12].

Bradfield Seeks Tenants and Temora Finishes Its Structure as SafeWork Begins a Six-Week Operation

A joint ministerial release on 8 October 2026 announced that private sector investment across the Western Sydney Aerotropolis has tripled in 18 months to $34.6 billion, overtaking the $29 billion of government investment in public infrastructure, as Western Sydney International Airport runs freight flights ahead of passenger services this month [3]. Expressions of interest opened the same day for space in the Second Building at Bradfield City, under construction for a 2028 opening, covering a 380 square metre manufacturing hall, a 280 square metre manufacturing area and 1,150 square metres of offices [3]. The release names Amazon and ALDI among the companies that have opted to base operations in the wider Aerotropolis, and that applicants may seek one or all three spaces, allowing manufacturing, research and commercial work to sit under one roof [3].

In the Riverina, NSW Health announced on 8 October 2026 that the eastern wing of the $95 million Temora Hospital Redevelopment has reached structural completion, with the roof, windows and doors fitted and fit-out, equipment and external works to follow [4]. Delivered by Health Infrastructure, Richard Crookes Constructions and Murrumbidgee Local Health District, the hospital will add CT and ultrasound for the first time, a new emergency department, an operating theatre and a birthing suite, and is expected to be complete in 2028 [4]. The release says heritage items identified through community consultation will be built into the new hospital, which is being delivered in stages so services stay open, and places it within a $11.9 billion 2026-27 budget commitment covering 32 health facilities being built or upgraded [4]. Minister for Health Ryan Park said the building was "now moving to internal fit-out works" [4].

On site conditions, SafeWork NSW began a six-week compliance operation on 9 October 2026, its largest yet on psychosocial hazards, with inspectors visiting businesses in all industries and returning to workplaces that received notices in a May and June program covering more than 200 sites and more than 80 improvement notices [7]. The regulator records that 20.5 per cent of its requests for service now raise psychosocial harm, with construction first among the four industries seeking the most help, and notes that amendments to the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW) in force from 1 July 2026 require businesses to follow relevant codes of practice, including the Managing Psychosocial Hazards at Work Code of Practice, or to meet an equivalent or higher standard [7]. SafeWork Commissioner Janet Schorer said "Inspectors will be looking for evidence psychosocial risks are being actively managed" [7].

Final Thoughts

Two patterns run through the week's coverage. The first is the State drawing major infrastructure decisions into its own processes. The firming tender, as reported, uses its eligibility criteria to shape which technologies can bid [9], the Town Hall Square declaration moves a council's public domain project to State assessment on the strength of its transport interfaces [5, 6], and the grid reporting described data centre proponents meeting the cost of network expansion in western Sydney [8]. The composition of that reporting was consistent with the terms for power and public works being settled at State level before construction begins.

The second is planning incentives meeting local controls one site at a time. Affordable housing settings carried Corrimal and Paddington to State consent [2, 11], while a local sunlight clause held at Bondi Junction against the same kind of incentive [10], in a week when completions and commencements were reported at multi-year highs [1]. On delivery, the reporting ran from tenancy offers at Bradfield [3] to fit-out at Temora [4], and SafeWork's operation brought psychosocial risk management, where construction leads requests for help, under inspection [7]. The pattern of reporting was consistent with supply settings being applied and tested project by project, with delivery and site conditions moving alongside them.

1.  NSW Government, Minister for Planning and Public Spaces (7 October 2026). Planning reforms in action: NSW records highest housing completions in five years. https://www.nsw.gov.au/ministerial-releases/planning-reforms-action-nsw-records-highest-housing-completions-five-years 

2.  Apartments.com.au (8 October 2026). Toohey Millers wins approval for Runway Residences on Paddington's Oxford Street. https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/toohey-millers-wins-approval-for-runway-residences-on-paddingtons-oxford-street

3.  NSW Government, Deputy Premier and Minister for Western Sydney; Minister for Planning and Public Spaces; Minister for Finance (8 October 2026). Aerotropolis investment soars to $34.6 billion. https://www.nsw.gov.au/ministerial-releases/aerotropolis-investment-soars-to-346-billion  

4.  NSW Health (8 October 2026). Temora Hospital Redevelopment reaches major construction milestone. https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/news/Pages/20261008_01.aspx

5.  NSW Government, Minister for Planning and Public Spaces (9 October 2026). Town Hall Square proposal declared state significant. https://www.nsw.gov.au/ministerial-releases/town-hall-square-proposal-declared-state-significant  

6.  NSW Independent Planning Commission (9 October 2026). Request for advice on State or regional planning significance – Town Hall Square (advice to the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces dated 2 October 2026). https://www.ipcn.nsw.gov.au/cases/town-hall-square-request-advice-state-or-regional-planning-significance 

7.  SafeWork NSW (9 October 2026). SafeWork NSW to conduct largest-ever compliance operation focused on psychosocial hazards. https://www.safework.nsw.gov.au/news/safework-media-releases/safework-nsw-to-conduct-largest-ever-compliance-operation-focused-on-psychosocial-hazards 
   

8.  Herald Sun | by Ben Wilmot, Perry Williams (12 October 2026). Sydney data centre projects face years in limbo as electricity capacity sells out. https://www.heraldsun.com.au/business/data-centre-boom-unplugged-by-sydney-grid-squeeze/news-story/594eadd54429c4d223ac2342e944d4a2

9.  Renew Economy | by Peter Hannam & Giles Parkinson (13 October 2026). Batteries excluded in major tender designed to secure new gas plants to solve wind and solar droughts. https://reneweconomy.com.au/state-labor-sees-primary-role-for-gas-fired-power-in-latest-firming-tender-for-1-5-gigawatts/ 

10.  The Urban Developer | by Kirsten Craze (13 October 2026). Sunlight Rule Cruels Plans for Bondi Junction Apartment Tower. https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/bondi-junction-affordable-housing-tower-decision-park-shadow-nsw-sydney 

11.   Urban Digest | by Stephanie (13 October 2026). $109.6m Corrimal Coke Works development approved. https://urbandigest.com.au/ssd-83789711-109-6m-corrimal-coke-works-development-approved/

12.  Newcastle Herald | by Matthew Kelly (14 October 2026). Plans for another massive data centre revealed. https://www.newcastleherald.com.au/story/9367512/plans-for-a-15-billion-data-centre-at-wyong-have-been-unveiled-by-dcg-admin/  

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