Concerns surface over NVLX

Albury Wodonga Stock Agents Association (AWSAA) have been demanding information about the cost schedule for the past six months as well as an official February opening date, according to president Trevor Parker, who said the lack of information about using the $20 million facility was "very frustrating".

"We have not been given any cost schedules or date for agents, vendors and other saleyards users that will operate (the site) which is very frustrating," Mr Parker said.

"We don't know if there will be rising costs… the longer they won't tell us the more speculation it will be dearer."

However the comments were dismissed by NVLX umbrella company Regional Infrastructure Pty Ltd (RIPL) chief executive Garry Edwards who said agents and saleyard management had been in consultation about the new pricing structure that would be in line with current user fees.

"It will be within 20 cents, plus or minus, we are just finalising that at the moment," Mr Edwards said.

"There will be minor adjustments with the fact it is moving from a lot (based pricing) to individual (per head) pricing.

"The thing we are trying to work out is that we have to balance it, we need to pick a number within the scale because pricing varies (on the current structure) and we want to keep in line with the yard fees."

Mr Edwards said the user fees would be about $9 per head.

"The only discussion we may have is about setting a fee structure that lasts 16 months not four," he said.

"In the sense that will be the only point of discussion, the context of literally the period of time that fee structure is in place."

With Wagga Wagga, NSW, saleyards located 140 kilometres to the north of the saleyards and Wangaratta saleyards 55km to the south, agents aired their concerns about the lack of details that could see producers head to the neighbouring competitors selling centres.

"Absolutely no doubt people would be inquiring to their agents but as far as knock on effect we haven't seen that yet," GJ Hulm & Co Wagga Wagga director Isaac Hill said.

"If in time it proves to be too dear I'm sure we will be fielding calls this way about (producer) interest (from Wodonga)."

Wangaratta Stock Agents Association president Justin Keane said agents and producers were speculating high user fees figures based on the cost of the development.

"Any privately-owned business has an amount the facility owes them and that number has to be taken into consideration when deciding the pricing," Mr Keane said.

"When (the fee structure) comes out, people will make the decision based on whether they can or can't afford it.

"Wangaratta's advantage is that we can fly under that because we are council-owned and are in a $3m facility not a $20m one."

Furthermore AWSAA's Mr Parker said there would be teething problems that agents and producers would need to work through.

"As far as capacity is concerned it is not as big as the existing Wodonga saleyards but the management assure us that there will be better utilisation of space – time will tell," he said.

"I think cautious optimism is a fair assessment about the opening."

Mr Parker said it was a good decision to begin operating at the new facility in February and not open for the January weaner sales.

"At the end of the day the weaner sales is not something we can have hiccups with and it's naïve to think there won't be teething problems," he said.

He anticipated the February prime cattle throughput would be about 1500 to 2000 head weekly during February and said they would be good numbers to test the functionality of the new site.

NVLX manager James Thompson said 95 per cent of the yard structure was complete with final electrical and hardware testing underway.

"Everything will be finished by the time we move in February, there won't be much more to go before Christmas, just tidying and testing to occur," Mr Thompson said.

He said the decision not to hold the weaner sale at the Barnawartha site was due to difficulty of time management around the Christmas holiday period with builders and contractors.

"At the end of the day we had great plans to get it finished within 12 months but we lost a bit of time early winter with wet conditions and they made up a lot of time… we have assessed as we go," he said.

Mr Thompson said the entire development was "pretty impressive", but agents and producers would be most impressed with the roof and soft floor features.

He said the February opening of the site would test management of the operation.

"You can do all the testing in the world but until you put it in a live situation… we hope there are no teething problems but it will be tested as much as it can be and we hope for a smooth run," he said.