A preferred builder for the Macquarie Point Stadium has been revealed, with Australian company, Besix Watpac, emerging as the top candidate.

The builder was shortlisted in April, alongside Webuild Group.

“Over the coming month the Watpac team will continue to work with the Macquarie Point Development Corporation to finalise details to inform the delivery of this project,” Premier Jeremy Rockliff said.

A contract is expected to be signed at the end of the year.

The state government’s budget for the stadium is $1.13bn, a figure decided on before the war in the Middle East.

At this stage there’s no indication whether the build will be able to be delivered within that budget.

Besix Watpac general manager Al Crosby would not reveal whether it was possible, but he said the war on the Middle East had impacted the cost of business.

“We face these challenges all the time, the geopolitical challenges that come up and affect supply change is certainly a challenge, it’s something we deal with quite often.”

Macquarie Point Development Corporation chief executive, Anne Beach, said more detail about costs was expected to emerge in the coming months.

Meanwhile she also assured the timeline for the stadium would not blow out, as Besix Watpac takes on multiple big ticket builds, including the Brisbane Stadium.

“Watpac have demonstrated their capability in a number of streams and it is normal for them to be undertaking multiple projects at multiple times,” she said.

Greens criticise selection process

The Greens have described the selection of the new stadium builder as a ‘one horse race”, urging the government to provide more detail on the process and on costs.

Webuild, the runner-up, has been plagued with a number of allegations related to projects on the mainland and is also faces criminal charges over worker safety.

The Greens claim the company’s stadium bid was non-compliant, making Besix Watpac the only suitable candidate.

Greens Clark MP Vica Bayley said there was only the appearance of competition, potentially affecting the possibility of Tasmania getting a better price.

“The Webuild tender was incomplete and non-compliant from the start. It’s improbably to think the tender process did not pick up on some of the non compliance,” he said.

Ms Beach said both were strong contenders.