AU$373M for WA port infrastructure ‣ WorldCargo News

The 2024-25 State Budget by the Western Australia Government allocates AU$373 million for port projects in WA, prioritizing infrastructure for future development.

The Western Australia Government’s 2024-25 State Budget will include AU$373 million in new funding for projects at Western Australia’s ports.

The additional funding will be allocated to a range of significant maintenance and upgrade projects, enabling all the State’s major ports between Broome and Esperance to provide ongoing capacity for the forecast growth in imports and exports.

New projects to be delivered with funding in the 2024-25 State Budget include:

• AU$117 million for major rebuilding and upgrade of berths and mooring equipment at Fremantle, Kwinana and Esperance;
• AU$101 million contribution to a major new cargo wharf project at the Port of Dampier;
• AU$84 million for sustaining capital works across all ports;
• AU$17 million for essential roadworks at Utah Point in the Port of Port Hedland;
• AU$16 million for recladding of bulk export sheds at Geraldton and Bunbury;
• AU$14 million in funding for an industry-supported Seafarers Centre at Port Hedland;
• AU$8 million for heritage renovation of historic Albany port buildings;
• AU$6 million for infrastructure to support the first point of entry designation for Broome Port;
• AU$5 million for B Shed upgrade to improve the visitor experience and further activate the Victoria Quay precinct; and
• AU$4 million for planning for proposed new facilities in Esperance and Albany.

WA’s port authorities are all 100 per cent owned by the State and operate as Government Trading Entities.

All of these investment projects are designed to ensure ongoing support for local employment and regional economic development.

Western Australia Ports Minister David Michael said: “As a geographically isolated State, Western Australia’s entire economy depends on efficient port infrastructure and associated land transport connections to support critical import and export supply chains. These latest investments across all our ports represent the Cook Government’s commitment to not only our export industries but to the infrastructure we need to maintain the supply chains of critical industrial and agricultural inputs.”

“All of these projects are investments in WA’s economic infrastructure, to cater for existing trades as well as new and emerging ones. The funding in our 2024-25 Budget is a strong vote of confidence in the State’s future growth potential,” Michael added.

Western Australia exported AU$263.5 billion of goods in the year to December 2023, and most of those goods passed through the State’s ports.

The State’s ports were also crucial in receiving the bulk of the AU$48.8 billion of goods imported in the same 12-month period.