No tender process for $444m Great Barrier Reef grant, Senate hearing told

Department says it approached the non-profit group just weeks before the budget and had still not signed an agreement
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The government approached a non-profit group that will receive a record grant for reef protection only a few weeks before it announced the deal in the federal budget.

And the government's announcement of $444m for the Great Barrier Reef Foundation remains an "intention" - there is still no agreement between the foundation and the Department of Environment and Energy, a Senate estimates hearing has heard.