Procurement and tenders
Cairns Regional Council uses the Tenderlink online procurement system to manage, promote and receive most of Council's contracts, tenders and procurement opportunities. Suppliers are encouraged to create a free account in Tenderlink to receive email notification when a new tender is released to market. It only takes five minutes to sign up and you will need your Australian Business Number (ABN) at hand.
Sign up or sign in to Tenderlink
Current procurement opportunities
Our current procurement opportunities are listed below. All current tenders are listed on our Tenderlink website, but not all quotations.
Before submitting a tender, please refer to our Guidelines for Tenderers Submitting Tenders Electronically ( PDF, 0.3 MB )
Contract 3113 - SPS Priority Access Cover Replacement
Contract 3112 - University 2 Reservoir Design and Construction
Consultancy CRC-1234 - Level 3 Condition Assessment of Robert Road Reservoir
Contract 3110 - SCADA Upgrade Project - CP-35 Kingfisher RTU Hardware
Terms and conditions
The Standard Terms and Conditions govern Council's purchase of goods and/or services. We may incorporate these into a contract with a Supplier.
Anticipated procurement
View potential procurement activities scheduled to occur during the next 12 months. This list is updated every three to six months and subject to change at any time.
Closed tenders
View closed tenders including details of tender award where applicable.
| Terms used by Council | What they mean |
|---|---|
| Request for Tender (RFT) | A Request for Tender is an open invitation to any supplier for Council works or services. Suppliers need to respond by completing Tender Response Schedules and attaching evidence of their ability to meet the requirements of that tender. Tenders will include a range of services, goods and project and construction works. |
| Request for Quotation (RFQ) | A Request for Quotation is a selective invitation to three or more suppliers. Only those suppliers who have been invited may respond. |
| Register of Prequalified Suppliers (ROPS) | A ROPS is a contractual arrangement that Council may establish for the carrying out of works, goods and services, by inviting public tenders through a Request for Tender process. A ROPS is a panel of suppliers where multiple suppliers are appointed, sometimes under many different categories. Suppliers must submit a conforming tender response and will be assessed during the evaluation process to determine if they are successful. Suppliers and Contractors are 'pre-qualified' to provide services, works or products. Council maintains more than 25 different lists of ROPS arrangements. These ROPS lists are advertised and renewed every two to fiveyears, and suppliers who want to be on the list must submit a tender at renewal time. *Please note that inclusion on a ROPS list is not a guarantee of work with Council. The ROPS is prequalificatCouncil staff members use them to find suitable suppliers to deliver services or supply products as required. |
| Preferred Supplier Arrangements (PSA) | A PSA is a contractual arrangement and Council may establish a PSA for two years where there is a known program of work, and works or services are usually required frequently and in large volumes. Council is able to obtain better value for money by aggregating the demand for those goods and services. Prices or a schedule of rates is usually fixed for the duration of a PSA arrangement. |
| Local Buy | Local Buy is a procurement service established by the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) which provides procurement arrangements to local and other government entities by aggregating purchasing power. This may eliminate the need for government authorities to establish their own supply contracts and arrangements. A contractual arrangement established by Local Buy enables Councils and government entities to purchase from Local Buy without the need to seek tenders or quotes. More information on Local Buy can be found at their website: https://www.localbuy.net.au |
Cairns Regional Council officers are required to conduct their procurement activities in accordance with the Local Government Act 2009 and the Local Government Regulation 2012, as well as Council's Procurement Policy ( PDF, 0.33 MB ) and Code of Conduct.
If you have any questions or enquiries, contact our Procurement team at tender@cairns.qld.gov.au.
This form is used to set up new Suppliers (Creditors) in Council's financial system. This form facilitates payment of invoices and changes to supplier's contact information and banking details.
By signing this form the Supplier acknowledges that:
- The information on the form is correct
- They have read and accepted the Standard Terms and Conditions for Goods and Services of Cairns Regional Council which are available on the Council’s website www.cairns.qld.gov.au/tenders
- Where Suppliers have executed an alternative contract, the Supplier is bound by the Terms and Conditions of that Contract
Download the Supplier Form. ( PDF, 0.13 MB )
Completed forms are to be submitted to Accounts Payable at apenquiry@cairns.qld.gov.au.
Please ensure the following details are on your invoice:
- A valid Purchase Order number (if you haven’t already received a Purchase Order, you will need to contact the Council Officer who requested your services)
- An invoice number and invoice date
- GST amount, which has been calculated correctly
- Addressed to Cairns Regional Council
All invoices must comply with ATO requirements.
Do not send invoices that have already been, or will be paid, by a corporate credit card. Forward these to your Council contact who has made the payment.
Returned invoices
Your invoice will be returned if it does not comply with the above invoice requirements.
We will send an email outlining why your invoice has been returned. Once the information has been amended, please resend the amended invoice to invoices@cairns.qld.gov.au.
Questions and support
For any payment enquiries relating to invoices, such as follow up of payment, please email the Accounts Payable team at apenquiry@cairns.qld.gov.au.
For any procurement queries, email purchasing@cairns.qld.gov.au.
In compliance with section 237 of the Local Government Regulation 2012, Council publishes a listing of all contractual arrangements with a value more than $200,000 excluding GST in value or more. The report is published as a rolling 12 month period and updated monthly. Information within the report includes:
- The entity with whom Council has entered into the contractual arrangement;
- The purpose of the contractual arrangement; and
- The value of the contractual arrangement.
Download the Publishing Details of Particular Contracts (Contracts over $200,000) report.
Cairns Regional Council is a major contributor to the Cairns economy, generating a range of economic benefits for the region through employment and expenditure on goods and services.
- Council’s total expenditure for 2024/2025 was $519 million, with 89% ($463 million) being local. This local expenditure directly creates and sustains local jobs and supports local business and industry.
- Of the remaining 11%, there was no local option for 4%, non-local suppliers were used for 4% and the remaining 3% is attributable to government expenditure.
- Council’s direct expenditure creates a ripple effect in the local economy through linkages with other businesses and workers spending money in Cairns, generating an additional economic local impact of $615 million (the total of indirect or ripple effects). When combined with Council’s direct expenditure of $463 million, this generates a total local economic impact of $1.078 billion.
- The economic impact of Council’s expenditure contributes $468 million in gross value add as well as supporting and generating 4,545 local jobs. This value represents Council’s contribution to the Gross Regional Product (GRP) of 3.8% for the Cairns region, supporting 10 jobs for every $1 million of Council expenditure, as well as benefiting a wide range of local businesses.
Note: Local expenditure is made up of employee wages, operational expenditure on goods and services and investment in community infrastructure and building projects through Council’s capital works program.
This information is available through the State of Procurement Report endorsed by Council approximately September each year.
Last Updated: 16 October 2026
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