In April this year the Mobile Carriers Forum (MCF) launched an investigation into local government development application fees for telecommunications towers in Queensland following reports from MCF members that the Sunshine Coast Regional Council was charging carriers $20,000 – just for the right to apply for development approval.

Following a mixed response from Councils contacted by the MCF, the MCF Program Manager Matt Evans has written to Queensland Minister for Infrastructure and Planning Stirling Hinchliffe to express the industry’s concerns.

In its letter the MCF has advised the Minister that the fee charged by Councils to apply for a new tower represents more than 15% of the cost of the development of that tower. “No other comparative class of application that we are aware of attracts an application fee of this magnitude” said MCF Program Manager Matt Evans. “In the Maroochy area of the Sunshine Coast the application fee for the development of a $150,000 telecommunications facility is the same for a development comprising 55 multiple dwellings costing around 20 million dollars.

Other Councils in South-east Queensland charge base fees ranging from $4000 to $6000, which are high by national standards, but until now the carriers have reluctantly agreed to absorb these fees. For an application in the same development class in Victoria or New South Wales a base fee of between $500 and $1000 is required.

The MCF has advised the Minister that the fees charged by Councils are having a direct impact upon the Carriers’ decisions to invest in Queensland’s infrastructure. Recently one of the MCF member carriers has advised that two proposals in its current program requiring DAs from Sunshine Coast Council have been put on hold until the fees are reviewed to a more acceptable level.

“Such high fees present a potential “road block” when such an investment is required even before construction has commenced” explained MCF Program Manager Matt Evans.

Together the three mobile network carriers operate networks comprising a total of more than 3300 mobile network facilities across Queensland servicing the needs of nearly 4 million Queensland mobile subscribers. They deploy and maintain many hundreds of mobile network facilities in Queensland each year.