Delivery shares
A delivery share is an entitlement to have water delivered to land in an irrigation area.
It gives you access to a share of the available capacity in the channel or piped network that supplies water to your property.
It provides the security of having water delivered when there is demand for water from other landholders on the channel or network.
Ownership
A delivery share is tied to the land and stays with the property if it is bought or sold.
If you sell your property the delivery share automatically transfers to the new owner.
Delivery share does not go when the water share is sold. The water share goes to the new owner on its own and the delivery share stays with the property.
A delivery share can be divided across a number of different outlets.
How it works
A delivery share is defined by a rate of megalitres (ML) per day.This rate sets out how deliveries will be shared if everyone on the channel or piped network wants water on the same day.
When there are more customer orders than the system can deliver, the delivery share rate is used to decide how deliveries are rationed.
Fees
Water corporations charge different fees for this entitlement. This is the main way the costs of operating and maintaining the channels, pipes and automated gates are shared.
In some cases these fees are significant and can be the main item on your water corporation bill.
It is best to check with your water corporation about your delivery share fees.
Reducing or increasing delivery share
You can increase your delivery share by transferring from another property in the same irrigation district. If there is spare capacity in the irrigation district you can apply to your water corporation to increase your delivery share, or issue you with delivery share if you are a new customer.
You can decrease your delivery share by transferring to another property in the same irrigation district or terminating all or part of your share and paying the termination fee.
This fee is equal to 10 times the annual infrastructure access fee, and can be significant.
Policies and information
Delivery shares are managed by water corporations in accordance with the Directions on Delivery Entitlements issue by the Minister for Water. Note that clause 13(3)(b) of the directions have been superseded in the Murray-Darling Basin by the Commonwealth's "Water Charge (Termination Fees) Rules", which require that a termination fee be no more than 10 times the annual access fee.
Download PDF Directions on Delivery Entitlements (413 Kb)
Copy of record
You can download a copy of record to get the full details of any delivery share from the Water Register here.
You will need to enter the delivery share identification number and pay the relevant $16.30 fee.
Details on a copy of record include the delivery share’s total rate in ML per day and the rate for each outlet, the delivery system, the annual delivery allowance, owner and land description.
A sample copy of record is available below.