THE big picture Urannah Water Scheme has been renamed Bowen River Utilities, as the ambitious major project pushes forward.
Bowen River Utilities managing director John Cotter said the major project has been divided into three sections: Collinsville Irrigation, Bowen Renewable Energy Hub, and Urannah Water Scheme.
"Our name has changed but our mission has not," Mr Cotter said.
"We will build the Urannah Dam, deliver thousands of jobs, water security, prime agricultural land, cheaper energy and flow on economic benefits for thousands of Queenslanders in the Mackay, Whitsunday and Isaac Regions in the not too distant future."
Mr Cotter said the purpose of the rebranding was to make it simpler for people to understand the location and the nature of the projects, and to put a clear distinction between our project and previous iterations of the Urannah Dam proposal.
"The Urannah Dam has been talked about for decades, we know that locals are sceptical," Mr Cotter said.
"We want to assure them that this time it is different. I've put my own money on the line.
"We are the only water infrastructure project in North Queensland to attract private investment and we have strong support from both the Federal Government and the State Government."
The project hit a milestone recently, with 70 people now working to complete the environmental impact statement for this project.
"Despite difficult circumstances in the face of COVID-19, we are fast tracking as much work as possible and are confident our project will play a part in rebuilding the North Queensland economy," Mr Cotter said.
The dam site is located in the upper Broken River Valley, south east of Collinsville. The proposed dam is about 80 per cent of the capacity of the massive Burdekin Dam but only covers 20pc of the geographic area.
The proposal includes a 22,500 hectare (55,600 acre) agricultural precinct as well as water for mining projects and urban areas. Urannah Dam will host a major, 1000 megawatt hydro-electric power station.