A new intermodal regional freight port at Charlton, west of Toowoomba, will be developed at a cost of AUD150 million.

The Australian Transport and Energy Corridor (ATEC) group has been granted permission to develop the 200 hectare site in three stages over the next 20 years, with stage one set to be completed by 2012, stage two by 2016 and stage three to be completed thereafter.

The Charlton terminal will link the rich Surat Basin resources province to the freight and logistics markets of eastern Australia.

John Dornbusch, chairman of ATEC Freight Terminals Trust, says the site will be the major regional port to support growth in Queensland.

"We support the Queensland government's view that by 2030 the Surat Basin resources province will be adding AUD10 billion per annum to gross regional product and supporting 16,000 new jobs."

Dornbusch says the project means jobs in the development stage and ongoing jobs on site.