The State Government has announced the expansion of Project Bank Accounts (PBA) for Government projects where the total value of the Works equals or is greater than $1.5m (GST inclusive).
PBA’s are an alternative payment model designed to provide greater security of payment for subcontractors.
PBA’s are intended to:
- provide a degree of insolvency protection;
- speed up the payment process for parties lower down in the supply chain; and
- increase transparency and accountability in the payment process.
All Works contracts released for tender as of 1 July 2019 and valued at $1.5m (GST inclusive) or above will require a PBA to be set up by the head contractor. The head contractor will establish a PBA at the start of the contract and advise the details of the eligible subcontractors (where the subcontract value is above $20,000 GST inclusive).
The PBA is a bank account that operates under a trust. Rather than payments being made by PTA directly to a head contractor’s regular bank account, they are paid into the PBA and the funds are distributed to the head contractor and subcontractors/suppliers simultaneously.
PBA’s do not affect the contractor’s contractual rights and responsibilities to subcontractors and suppliers. Note that PTA will not negotiate terms and conditions of the documentation required to set up a PBA by the head contractor.
Information and documentation for tenderers is provided at the time of tender issue.
For further enquiries, please contact procurementenquiries@pta.wa.gov.au