What is a delivery share?

A delivery share is an entitlement to have water delivered to land in an irrigation area. It gives access to a share of the available capacity in the channel or piped network that supplies water to an irrigation property. Delivery share provide the security of having water delivered when there is demand for water from other landholders on the channel or network. It is linked to fixed charges that must be paid regardless of water use.

DEECA, Goulburn-Murray Water (GMW) and Lower Murray Water (LMW) have put in place all 31 actions recommended through the Delivery Share Review to improve delivery share arrangements in northern Victoria and help irrigation districts adapt to changing customer needs.

Delivery share review

Delivery share arrangements were reviewed in 2017-18 as part of our work supporting irrigation communities adjusting to changes in climate, water availability and socio-economic impacts of water recovery under the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

We found that, although they were working as intended, there was scope to adjust and strengthen delivery share arrangements. Opportunities for change reflect the significant and continuing changes in water and land use in our irrigation districts, providing new ways for irrigators and the rural water corporations to manage shared infrastructure.

Outcomes and actions were proposed for the Sunraysia and Goulburn-Murray districts, recognising the unique circumstances of each region.

Download the reports

Delivering on the Actions

We have worked closely with LMW, GMW and their customers to put the Delivery Share Review actions in place. We have made sure that irrigator’s voices will continue to be heard, with water corporations working closely with the community to respond to changing water delivery needs and emerging pressures. This is part of the Victorian Government’s commitment to supporting a productive and profitable irrigation sector.

The actions for the Goulburn Murray Irrigation District included a commitment that the irrigators’ share of benefits from water recovered by the GMW Connections Project would be returned on the basis of delivery share. The Minister for Water has now announced how these benefits will be provided to irrigators.

Find out more about the distribution of the irrigators share.

Delivery share fact sheets

Delivering on our commitments

The completion of the Delivery Share Review, with all actions in place, delivers on the Victorian Government’s commitment under Action 4.3 of Water for Victoria to help irrigation districts adapt to the changing needs of their customers. This is part of the Victorian Government’s commitment to supporting a productive and profitable irrigation sector.

LMW and GMW have worked closely with their customers to explore the opportunities identified through the actions, including developing innovative responses that support the outcomes and objectives of the review. This has included developing new spatial resources and capacity sharing tools that help irrigators to make informed decisions about their water access and investment.

Highlights include:

  • Delivering on the commitment that the irrigators’ share of benefits from water recovered by the GMW Connections Project would be returned to irrigators on the basis of delivery share. Find out more about the distribution of the irrigators share.
  • Integrating actions with steps underway in GMW’s transformation process, to ensure the objectives of the review are deeply embedded in the way irrigation infrastructure is managed and pricing decisions are made.
  • Managing demand bottlenecks in Sunraysia’s irrigation districts through verifying delivery capacity and matching against delivery share, facilitating trade and developing capacity sharing tools, ensuring irrigators have timely access to their delivery entitlements.

Page last updated: 27/04/23