The NT Government has handed a contract for its $89 million Local Jobs Fund to a Queensland firm.

The NT Government's Local Jobs Fund was announced in 2018 to increase employment and stimulate the Territory's struggling economy.

“The Territory Labor Government's number one priority is to create local jobs,” Treasurer Nicole Manison said at the time.

“The new fund will invest in projects that create local jobs quickly.”

The scheme gives private companies loan guarantees, concessional loans, co-investments and grants finally opened to applicants in May last year.

Six months after that, a loan administrator can be selected.

The Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority was picked to deliver the service, at a cost of $192,000 over five years.

“It sends the wrong signal,” NT Chamber of Commerce deputy CEO Brian O'Gallagher has told the ABC.

“We've gone straight out to an interstate company. It flies in the face of what we are trying to achieve.”

The Department of Trade, Business and Innovation says five organisations bid for the contract, just one of which was from the Territory.

“The successful tender met ‘Value for Territory’ requirements based upon price and system capabilities that addressed the scope of provisions sought,” a spokesperson said.

The department says it undertook “extensive market sounding including local capability” before requesting quotes.

The Government has announced two recipients of funding as part of the scheme.

Telecommunications company Vocus has received a $7.9 million investment for a planned upgrade of the Territory's fibreoptic cable network speed from 400 gigabits to 20 terabits.

Additionally, the Asia Pacific Aircraft Storage (APAS) facility in Alice Springs has been given $1 million for a plan to expand its storage capacity from 20 to 50 planes.

The Local Jobs Fund was established after the NT Government cut its Infrastructure Development Fund (IDF) in 2018.

The IDF made just one investment over its two-year lifespan – giving up $10 million for a water bottling plant that did not have an extraction license at the time.