Construction of New Mount Perisher Six Seater Chairlift on Track

Mountainwatch | Reggae Elliss

The construction of Perisher new $26million 6-seater chairlift is progressing on schedule, manufacturer Doppelmayr taking advantage of favourable weather and minimal rain days over the past two months.

The planning and design of the chair started in 2020 while construction on the new chair started last summer when the foundations were laid for the top station and prep works done for a safe access road. Over winter Doppelmayr also gained approval to set up its own concrete plant in Jindabyne which reduces the risk associated with uncertain concrete supply issues.  They have since set up a smaller concrete plant at Smiggins for an even quicker concrete turnaround for the project.

The pre-winter start, reliable concrete supply and the current construction schedule should see the chair finished and in operation for the 2025 snow season.

Last week Perisher invited media for a behind the scenes look at the construction and progress of the build and it is impressive. The top station is taking shape with the installation of drive equipment, including the bull wheel, and chair acceleration and deceleration machinery now complete. The lifting machinery is housed in Doppelmayr’s latest D-Line station design, a sleek looking structure that blends into the very top of Mount Perisher.

The chair will lift skiers and boarders to an altitude of 2042 metres making it the highest lifted point in Australia. The view from the top is expansive, 180-degrees taking in the top of Freedom Quad chairlift in Guthega and Ridge Quad Chairlift in Blue Cow, and right down to Smiggin Holes and out towards Charlottes. We were up there on a bright partly cloudy day and could see all the way down to Jindabyne. No doubt there will be a lot of photos taken before people drop in from the top.

The new chair also opens up the terrain as it has only 10 towers, 27 less than the previous two chairs combined and with the extra altitude there are plenty of different line options to choose. The new high-speed chair is state of the art using Doppelmayr’s newest technology and runs at a speed of 4.5m/sec with a 5.6-minute lift ride so you’ll be able to lock in plenty of laps.

The chair is direct drive, so no gear box which means less maintenance and it uses less power. The detachable chairs have padded seats and foot rests and will be housed in a chair shed each night, reducing de-icing issues.  The new chair is also quieter with rubber-lined running rail mountings, sound-dampened outer guide rails, vibration-reduced station sheave assemblies, and a low-noise bull wheel design.

Shaun Turner, Doppelmayr Australia’s GM, grew up in Jindabyne and is a life-long local skier and said the chair was designed with Mount Perisher’s conditions in mind, including the wind.

“A cross wind blowing from the Eyre side is most likely to cause issues,” Shaun said. “But the individual chairs are heavier, a six-seat chair that is the weight of eight-seater, which means less sway,” Shaun said. “The rope gauge also monitors wind conditions and the cable adjusts accordingly so it can run safely with less wind issues.”

Long-term Perisher operations manager Michael Fearnside said conversations about a new Mount Perisher chair started in the late ‘90s and reckons the decision to go ahead is a “vote of confidence” in the Australian snow industry.

It certainly is  – $23million is a significant investment, the biggest single investment by a ski resort in the past four decades. Hopefully, we’ll have cold May temps and pre-season snow next year, so Perisher can fire up its shiny new lift early next winter.

Stay up to date on the progress of the Mount Perisher 6 here.