Finance

Co-investment and Collaboration

The Australian PlantBank will attract investment in New South Wales to promote growth, innovation and leadership in plant science through the Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust.

PlantBank will develop private, statutory and educational collaborations to maximise financial and non-financial investment from project partners.

The Trust will use PlantBank as a centre to foster linkages with universities, including a strategic partnership with universities in the Sydney basin to develop the facility as a centre of learning about NSW & Australian ecosystems. These partnerships will seek to include the development of an undergraduate degree on natural and managed ecosystems and postgraduate programs.

Leveraging national and international investment

As an integral part of the international Seedbank network, PlantBank will ensure continued success in leveraging global commitments to Seedbank activities and capitalising on collaborative projects that may arise in the future. Historically, the NSW Seedbank has benefited from this international network through funding provided by the Millennium Seedbank Project, UK as well as Australian corporate sponsors.

PlantBank will host collaborative research programs and attract increased investment in science through research grants.

Development Timeframe

PlantBank is the leading capital investment priority of the Trust and planning for the facility is well advanced. Development of PlantBank is envisaged to occur over four financial years, commencing in 2010/11 and concluding in 2013/14. In the interim, services will continue to be delivered from the existing temporary facilities.

Financial Resources

An investment of $19.787 million is required to deliver PlantBank. This sum includes escalation costs forecast to completion, based on a development program which commences in July 2010 and concludes in 2014.

The Trust does not generate reserve funds of a sufficient scale to undertake this investment. Investment will be sought from a variety of sources, including the New South Wales Government, the Federal Government, private Foundations and the Friends of the Botanic Gardens.

The projected cash flow as currently forecast is as follows:


2010-11	2011-12	2012-13	2013-14	Total
$1,237,672	$6,687,000	$11,522,328	$340,000	$19,787,000

Fundraising target and partners

A fundraising target of $4.25 million was reached in November 2012. More help is still needed to grow and maintain the research and operation of PlantBank well into the future.

For further information or to pledge support please contact:

Nicky Jones, phone 02 9231 8022
Joanna Allwood, phone 02 9231 8087
Or email: saveaspecies@rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au

Pomaderris adnata seed
Counting and measuring seeds of Pomaderris adnata.

Portulaca oleracea seed illustration
Illustration of Portulaca oleracea seed