From late November to late February a significant increase was noted of vessels making use of the increased depth available in Port Philip Bay, says the port authority.
The previous all-tides draught was 11.6 metres and during the three-month period under review a total of 51 ships had an operating draught greater than 11.6 metres.
On average a ship utilised the extra draught every second day, the largest with a declared draught of 13.9 metres. The port’s new draught is 14 metres.
The channel deepening was named Infrastructure Project of the Year by Infrastructure Partnerships Australia, who said that it was a showcase project for public-private ventures, being brought in $200m under budget and a month ahead of schedule.
However, the dredging, which removed 23 million cubic metres of sediment from the bay, has been subject to attacks from pressure groups who say that it has caused greater tidal ranges and beach erosion, pressure on sensitive marine life and an unknown amount of damage from toxins leaching from the spoil dump.