future industries region
The Banana Shire Future Industries Demonstration Region (FIDR) is a bold national initiative led by Michael Sharpe through the Strategic Industries Alliance to establish Central Queensland as Australia's premier destination for future industries. More than a place, FIDR is a vision to create a globally recognised innovation ecosystem where breakthrough technologies are conceived, developed, demonstrated and commercialised in real-world environments. By bringing together industry, government, researchers, investors and regional communities, the initiative will accelerate sovereign capability, attract global investment, create high-value careers and position Banana Shire as the region where Australia's next generation of industries is built, tested and launched to the world.
One Region. Multiple Industries.
The Banana Shire offers a unique combination of agriculture, mining, manufacturing, energy and regional infrastructure within a single location. This enables companies to design, manufacture, test and demonstrate new technologies without relocating projects across multiple sites around Australia.
For example, a company developing an autonomous vehicle can:
- manufacture prototype components at Advanced Manufacturing Technologies – Biloela (AMT Biloela);
- integrate systems with local engineering expertise;
- test the vehicle in agricultural, mining or industrial environments;
- demonstrate the technology to customers and investors; and
- refine and commercialise the product—all within the one region.
Supporting Future Industries
The Demonstration Region will support innovation across a broad range of sectors, including:
- Advanced Manufacturing
- Autonomous Systems
- Robotics
- Artificial Intelligence
- Precision Agriculture
- Mining Technologies
- Renewable Energy
- Circular Economy
- Industrial Automation
- Defence and Dual-Use Technologies
- Smart Infrastructure
Creating Opportunity
The FIDR is designed to attract Australian and international companies seeking to:
- develop new technologies;
- demonstrate products under real operating conditions;
- validate systems before commercial deployment;
- establish regional manufacturing capability;
- collaborate with industry and researchers;
- access skilled workforce development; and
- accelerate commercialisation.
Every organisation that comes to Biloela creates opportunities for local manufacturers, engineers, technology companies, training providers and regional businesses.
Rather than waiting for opportunities to come to the region, the FIDR is designed to bring the companies that create those opportunities to Biloela.
The Foundation Capability
The first major initiative within the Demonstration Region is Advanced Manufacturing Technologies – Biloela (AMT Biloela).
Developed by AUKUS Forum together with Callide Manufacturing Company and SkillsTrain, AMT Biloela will establish Australia's first nationally scalable model for industry-led advanced manufacturing and workforce development.
Initially focused on welding and CNC machining, the model is designed to expand into additive manufacturing, autonomous systems, robotics and other advanced manufacturing technologies while providing the blueprint for future AMT centres across regional Australia.
A Long-Term Vision
The Banana Shire Future Industries Demonstration Region is more than a single project.
It is a long-term regional economic development strategy that seeks to attract investment, strengthen sovereign industrial capability, create highly skilled regional employment and establish the Banana Shire as Australia's leading regional destination for future industries.
Our vision is simple:
Make Banana Shire the place where Australia's future industries are developed, demonstrated and commercialised.
Australian Proving Grounds
The Australian Proving Grounds is an AUKUS Forum initiative in partnership with Banana Shire Council, established to create one of the world's most diverse environments for designing, manufacturing, testing, demonstrating and commercialising future technologies under real-world operating conditions.
Covering more than 24,000 square kilometres—twice the size of the U.S. State of Connecticut—the region combines an extraordinary concentration of industrial capability within a single location. Positioned adjacent to the Port of Gladstone, Australia's largest multi-commodity export port on the east coast, the region sits within one of Australia's most significant renewable energy zones while also supporting four operating coal mines, a gold mine, a coal-fired power station, a major ammonia manufacturing facility, extensive rail and road freight networks, airfields and purpose-built industrial infrastructure. Strategically located on Australia's east coast, the region is situated near Shoalwater Bay Training Area, where the Australian Defence Force and United States military regularly conduct large-scale joint exercises, while also providing direct access west into the vast Australian Outback for long-range testing, autonomous operations and future capability development. Few locations anywhere in the world offer such a powerful combination of industrial capability, strategic geography and operational diversity.
Unlike conventional proving grounds focused on a single domain, the Australian Proving Grounds enables companies to validate technologies across agriculture, mining, manufacturing, energy, transport and defence within one integrated regional ecosystem. Autonomous systems can operate on working cattle properties in Australia's largest beef-producing region, mining technologies can be demonstrated in active resource operations, advanced manufacturing solutions can be integrated with local industry, and renewable energy, robotics, artificial intelligence and dual-use technologies can be evaluated under authentic operating conditions. The proximity to major defence training activities also creates opportunities for industry to engage with defence users, demonstrate emerging capabilities and support the development of sovereign and allied technologies. By combining real industry, real infrastructure and real operating environments, organisations can move seamlessly from concept and prototype to demonstration, validation and commercial deployment while reducing development time, cost and investment risk.
The Australian Proving Grounds represents a new national model for innovation, sovereign capability and regional economic development. It is designed to attract Australian and international companies seeking to develop, validate and commercialise the technologies that will shape the industries of tomorrow while creating new investment, skilled employment and regional supply chain opportunities. As an AUKUS Forum initiative, in collaboration with Pillar Two Labs, the Australian Proving Grounds seeks to strengthen collaboration between Australian industry and allied partners by providing a destination where emerging technologies can be proven before entering domestic and international markets —a place where innovation is built, tested, proven and launched to the world.
