Leighton Holdings company John Holland has secured a contract worth more than $150m to expand the Sundrop Farms arid climate agricultural operations located at Port Augusta in South Australia.
Under the contract, the company will design and construct a climate-controlled 20ha glasshouse facility, which will produce truss tomatoes for supermarkets across the country.
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Upon completion, operations are expected to harness solar energy to desalinate seawater and produce fresh water for the crops.
Heat will be generated to maintain the accurate glasshouse temperature and electricity will be produced to power the facility.
Leighton Holdings executive chairman Marcelino Fernández Verdes said: "Increasingly, modern agricultural developments require expertise in a broad range of skills, such as commercial construction, desalination, energy, and irrigation, which can be customised to the specialised needs of each farming operation.
"Working with Sundrop, John Holland has tailored its multidisciplinary experience to meet the unique requirements of this sustainable, arid-environment agricultural project."
John Holland managing director Glenn Palin said: "John Holland is proud to have worked closely with Sundrop throughout the development of this exciting project.
"Together, we have built the business case for expansion, scoped the project requirements and planned costs and implementation."
Planned to commence in December 2014, the project is scheduled for completion in late 2016.
The construction phase is expected to provide substantial opportunities for local, as well as state-based businesses.
