The Barmah Choke water trade balance at the start of the 2025-26 water year will deliver a substantial trade opportunity for water users, says the Murray-Darling Basin Authority.

MDBA river management executive director Jacqui Hickey said the Barmah Choke trade balance will be close to 39 gigalitres on July 1.

This will allow water users to trade water from upstream to downstream of the Barmah Choke until the balance reaches zero.

“Providing this information annually allows water users to make plans for the coming water year,” Ms Hickey said.

The Barmah Choke trade restriction has been active since 2014 to protect water delivery to existing entitlement holders and to maintain the local river environment.

The trade restriction limits how much water can be traded from upstream of the choke to downstream.

The Barmah Choke (also called the Narrows) is a naturally narrow stretch of the Murray River that runs through the Barmah-Millewa Forest near Echuca.

“While trading water from downstream to upstream of the Narrows is always open, trades from upstream to downstream can only happen if the same or greater amount has first gone the other way — this is the ‘balance’ of trade,” Ms Hickey said.

“River managers will continue to assess the balance of trade in planning for the year ahead, by considering factors like storage levels, expected demand, state allocations, and climate forecasts.”

There are no plans to relax the restriction on trade through the choke in 2025-26. The rules of trade are governed by the Murray-Darling Basin Agreement between the Commonwealth and the basin state governments.

Market participants are also encouraged to read the trade management protocol developed jointly by the Victorian Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) and WaterNSW.

For more information on how the opening balance of the Barmah Choke is calculated, go to: https://www.mdba.gov.au/water-use/water-markets/water-trade/barmah-choke-trade-balance

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Friday, 10th October 2025

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