Highway closure pushes ICF Haulage into administration

Hipco Pty Ltd, the operator of New South Wales trucking business ICF Haulage, has entered voluntary administration after rising fuel costs and the prolonged closure of a major freight route placed additional pressure on the company’s finances.

Sule Arnautovic and Jessica Perri of SALEA Advisory were appointed joint and several voluntary administrators on 9 July 2026. The Lithgow-based business has ceased trading because insufficient funds were available to continue its operations, and the administrators expect that the company will ultimately be placed into liquidation.

The administrators are seeking to realise the company’s assets and maximise the return available to creditors. Details of Hipco’s liabilities, secured creditor position and expected recoveries have not yet been disclosed.

ICF Haulage had operated from Lithgow since 1999 and specialised in transporting quarry and construction materials, including sand, gravel, aggregates and road base. The family-owned business reportedly operated a fleet of 12 tipper trucks and quad-dog combinations and employed about 14 people.

The administrators identified the closure of the Great Western Highway at Victoria Pass, higher fuel costs and weather-related disruption as contributing factors in the company’s collapse. The highway has been closed in both directions for urgent work after structural movement and cracking were identified at Mitchells Causeway, forcing freight operators onto longer alternative routes.

ICF managing director Ian Fitzgerald had warned in April that the closure was adding about two hours to each round trip between Lithgow and Sydney. He said the resulting detours had increased the company’s weekly fuel bill by approximately $6,000 and reduced drivers’ earnings.

The Victoria Pass closure began in March following a major geotechnical failure affecting the heritage-listed causeway. Transport for NSW has said the road will remain closed while a new crossing is constructed above the existing structure, with the project intended to restore the principal highway connection between Sydney and western New South Wales.

The disruption has imposed additional fuel, labour and maintenance costs on trucking operators required to use alternative routes. The NSW government has announced financial support for affected businesses and funding to strengthen detour roads, although transport industry representatives have argued that the available assistance does not match the losses incurred by larger freight operators.