State resources are being plundered and every drop of available funding hoovered up as the parties build their war chests.

It said that the credit crunch could lead to a fall in available funding for developing mining projects, particularly among 'smaller, more speculative companies'.

The audit office said that the 27.38 billion 'cost forecast' for phase one exceeded available funding by 204 million.

Last week's audit office report warned that the first phase would exceed available funding by 204 million and risked running up to a year late.

These summer opportunities have varied in scope depending on available funding from year to year.