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Temporary transfers
Our customers benefit from water trading and can perform temporary transfers on our online customer service portal Sunwater Online 24 hours a day.
Sunwater sells its available allocations on the temporary trade market each year via our water broker. Sunwater’s water broker is Ruralco Water who will trade our allocations via the online platform Water Exchange. To obtain access to seasonal allocations, check the Water Exchange web site or contact Lincoln Parr at 0419 473 153.
Water Exchange is available for public use. Sunwater is a strong advocate of increasing water market transparency to promote both trading and better utilisation of water throughout the State, and we hope that by having our trading occur via a publicly available platform will assist in achieving this goal.
Ownership details are not listed on the platform so trading activities are confidential, however pricing and volume data is made publicly available for relevant scheme’s which reference the requirement in their interim and resource operation licences (IROL and ROL). This publicly available data is listed on the Temporary Transfer Sale Information page.
In addition to Water Exchange, Sunwater has launched its own water trading board to promote the uptake of underutilised water across the State. The platform makes it easier for customers and non-customers who are looking to buy or sell water to easily find each other for temporary and permanent trades. That platform is available on the Sunwater website here.
For any enquires relating to water trading using the Water Exchange platform please contact Ruralco Water. For any enquiries regarding your water accounts, as always you can access your information at Sunwater Online or call customer support on 13 15 89.
For your local conditions, please refer to this table.
To apply for a transfer, please complete our temporary transfer form.
Temporary trading volumes
Water year: 2026-27
| Scheme | Priority | ROL zone | 2026-27 Temporary trade volumes (ML)* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bowen Broken | High-A1 | Bowen Broken Zone C | 630 |
| Bundaberg (Kolan only) | Medium | Kolan Zone AD | 10,000 |
| Burdekin Haughton | High | Burdekin Zone C | 10,000 |
| Cunnamulla | Medium | Allan Tannock Weir Storage | 120 |
| Julius Dam | High | Zone 1 | 10,350 |
| Lower Fitzroy | High | Zone Fitzroy A | 150 |
| Macintyre Brooke (CAP only) | High | Macintyre Brooke Zone B | 150 (CAP only) |
| Nogoa Mackenzie | High | Zone Mackenzie G | 200 |
| Pioneer River | High-A | Zone Pioneer 01 | 1,300 |
| Pioneer River | High-A | Zone Pioneer 02 | 8,025 |
| Proserpine River | High-A | Proserpine Zone A | 10,508 |
| Upper Burnett | High | Burnett Zone SB | 10 |
| Upper Burnett | High | Burnett Zone OB | 4 |
| Upper Burnett | Medium | Burnett Zone OC | 3 |
| Upper Burnett | Medium | Burnett Zone SA | 2 |
| Upper Burnett | Medium | Burnett Zone SB | 2 |
* Volumes are nominal volumes for the 2026-27 water year. All volumes are subject to announced allocations. If the announced allocation for a scheme is less than 100 per cent, the full nominal volume will not be available, only the volume equal to the current announcement
For further information or to register interest, please contact Sunwater’s Ruralco water broker Lincoln Parr on 0419 473 153 or lparr@ruralcowater.com.au.
Permanent trading volumes
In 2026-27 Sunwater intends to make medium priority water allocations available for permanent sale.
| Scheme | Priority | 2026-27 Permanent trade volumes (ML) |
|---|---|---|
| Burdekin Haughton | Medium | 5,000 |
| Cunnamulla | Medium | 120 |
| Lower Mary River | Medium | 4,000 |
| Mareeba-Dimbulah | Medium | 5,360 |
| Rookwood Weir* | Medium | 5,140 |
* Rookwood Weir volume reflected is before any losses are applied. Losses apply to Rookwood Weir zones A, B, C and D.
Customers can register their interest with Sunwater’s Ruralco water broker Lincoln Parr at 0149 473 153 or lparr@ruralcowater.com.au.
More information will be provided at a later date on our Water for Sale webpage.
Note: Burnett Water Party Limited (BWPL) medium priority allocations in the Upper Burnett have separate tariffs and charging arrangements from regular Upper Burnett WSS allocations. The latest BWPL tariffs can be reviewed here.
Murray-Darling Basin
Compliance
Sunwater is classified as an Irrigation Infrastructure Operator (IIO) in the Northern Murray-Darling Basin and is subject to Water Markets Decision requirements that commenced 1 July 2026.
Sunwater holds water allocations in the Cunnamulla and Macintyre Brook water supply schemes, both of which are subject to these requirements.
Under the framework, trading decisions may require public reporting where they could materially influence water market prices.
To access the available trading strategy exemption and avoid reporting individual trade decisions, Sunwater must publish a pre-announced trading strategy.
Pre-announced trading strategies for Cunnamulla and Macintyre Brook are provided below.
Sunwater engages independent water brokers Ruralco and Water Exchange in water trading activities to ensure fair and transparent market access for market participants.
Pre-announced trading strategies
Cunnamulla Water Supply Scheme
Sunwater holds 120 ML of medium priority water entitlements in the Cunnamulla Water Supply Scheme.
The full volume will be available for permanent (or entitlement trade), temporary (or allocation trade) and term allocation.
Water may be sold via:
- Water Exchange auctions managed by Ruralco on behalf of Sunwater
- direct market offers from Ruralco and Water Exchange.
Prices will reflect the market considering current and historic trading activity.
Relevant Sunwater supply tariffs, fees and charges apply.
Macintyre Brook Water Supply Scheme
Sunwater holds 150 ML of high priority CAP allocation available for temporary trade (allocation trade) only in the Macintyre Brook Water Supply Scheme.
Water may be sold via:
- Water Exchange platform auctions managed by Ruralco on behalf of Sunwater
- direct market offers through Ruralco and Water Exchange.
Prices will reflect the market considering current and historic trading activity.
Relevant Sunwater supply tariffs, fees and charges apply.
This report lists trades, approved on or after 1 July 2019, where Sunwater is the Murray-Darling Basin approval authority and is also the buyer or seller. This information is required as per section 12.38 of the Basin Plan 2012.
Service standard for processing temporary transfers
The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) has adopted the below service standard for processing times (that is, for the approval or rejection of trades).
| Service standard |
| Intra-state; 90% of allocation trades processed within 5 business days |
Performance against this standard reported for period: 1 July 2026 to 31 July 2026
| Allocation trade (temporary trades) processing time from 1 July 2026 | Performance against service standard | Intended service standard |
| Intra-state trades – % of trades processed within 5 business days | 96% | 90% |
| Number of Intra-state trades | 254 | |
| Volume of Intra-state trades | 31045.559 ML |
Temporary transfer of carryover water
Customers may temporary transfer carryover water as it is a personal product. If doing so, customers (the transferor) should note that:
- in specific conditions, carryover can be cancelled—these conditions are outlined in the terms and conditions section of the carryover application form for relevant schemes, found on the customer forms page.
- quarterly water loss factors may be applied and are also outlined in the carryover application form
- if carryover is cancelled or quarterly loss factors are applied, the transferor’s water account may go into a negative balance which may need to be reported to the regulator. This breach will need to be remedied through the purchase of temporary transfer water to bring the account out of a negative balance.
Customers must be aware of the multiple factors and risks associated with temporary transferring carryover water. Examples have been developed to demonstrate the risks of transferring carryover and provide visual representation of what a customer account may look like if carryover is cancelled in a carryover-eligible water supply scheme.
As this is a complex water accounting calculation, we strongly encourage customers considering a transfer of water inclusive of carryover contact customer support on 13 15 89 Monday-Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm to discuss their options.
Recommended water brokers
For assistance with purchasing or selling water on a temporary basis (via temporary transfer) or a permanent basis (via property transfer), visit the Purchase/transfer page.
More information
Sunwater Customer Support
Phone: 13 15 89
Email: customersupport@sunwater.com.au