Past trades

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The Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder (CEWH) first traded water in January 2014. Since then we have traded water 6 times in the following catchments:

  • Goulburn
  • Peel
  • Gwydir.

We've sold a total of 60,741 megalitres (ML) of water, generating $18.6 million revenue which is used to fund environmental activities. Table 1 provides a summary of past trades.

Table 1: Summary of past trades by the Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder

RegionDate of saleVolume sold (ML)Average price per MLRevenue for the environment
GoulburnJanuary to February 20230Not applicableNot applicable
GoulburnSeptember 201820,837$290.04$6,043,618
GwydirJanuary 20186,700$429.61$2,878,400
GoulburnNovember 201522,864$282$6,457,669
PeelMarch to April 2014340$95.82$32,580
GwydirJanuary to February 201410,000$321.74$3,217,000

Past trades

Goulburn – January 2023

On 23 January 2023, we announced the sale of up to 8,000 ML of annual water allocations in the Goulburn catchment in Victoria.

Prior to opening the tender, we sought an independent market valuation. Between early January 2023 and early February 2023, the price per ML of water on the annual water allocations market decreased substantially. This decrease was likely triggered by widespread rainfall in the Goulburn catchment. Many irrigators already had water in storage for the next year and therefore it was likely they needed to use the water this water year.

Prior to closing the tender, we received more independent market advice. Based on this and other market information, we revised the minimum sell price to $21 per ML.

We received a total of 27 bids, which equalled a combined volume of 11,600 ML. No bids were at or above $21 per ML. Therefore, no Goulburn annual water allocation was sold in this tender.

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Goulburn – September 2018

We completed 78 trades in the Goulburn resulting in the sale of 20,837 ML of Commonwealth water for the environment. This generated a return of $6,043,618.

The volume weighted average price (VWAP) was $290.04 per ML.

The last trade was registered on 25 September 2018.

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Gwydir – January 2018

We completed 2 trades in the Gwydir resulting in the sale of 6,700 ML of Commonwealth water for the environment. This generated a return of $2,878,400.

The VWAP was $429.61 per ML.

The last trade was registered on 18 January 2018.

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Goulburn – November 2015

We completed 44 trades in the southern Basin resulting in the sale of 22,864 ML of Commonwealth water for the environment. This generated a return of $6,457,669.

The parcel volume ranged from 30 ML to 5111 ML, with a median trade volume of 200 ML. The VWAP was $282 per ML.

The last trade was registered on 18 November 2015.

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Peel – March 2014

We completed 7 trades in the Peel resulting in the sale of 340 ML of Commonwealth water for the environment. This generated a return of $32,580.

The parcel volume ranged from 20 ML to 150 ML, with a median trade volume of 30 ML. The VWAP was $95.82 per ML.

The last trade was registered on 10 April 2014.

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Gwydir – January 2014

We completed 16 trades in the Gwydir resulting in the sale of 10,000 ML of Commonwealth water for the environment. This generated a return of $3.217 million.

The parcel volume ranged from 250 ML to 1,500 ML, with a median trade volume of 500 ML. The VWAP was $321.74 per ML.

The last trade was registered on 4 February 2014.

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