{"id":2328,"date":"2022-05-25T09:21:00","date_gmt":"2022-05-25T08:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/portstrategy.nfdtesting.uk\/greenport\/2022\/05\/25\/making-brisbane-future-ready\/"},"modified":"2026-08-27T13:56:28","modified_gmt":"2026-08-27T12:56:28","slug":"making-brisbane-future-ready","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/news\/cruise-greenport\/making-brisbane-future-ready\/","title":{"rendered":"Making Brisbane future ready"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Identifying a long-term, sustainable solution to supporting&nbsp;and growing Brisbane\u2019s cruise tourism industry is at the&nbsp;heart of the Brisbane International Cruise Terminal (BICT)&nbsp;development, says Neil Stephens, chief executive officer,&nbsp;Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL).<\/p>\n<p>He believes that, with the resumption of cruising now&nbsp;given the green light by the Australian and Queensland&nbsp;governments from June, the BICT is primed to be the&nbsp;epicentre of Australia\u2019s cruise recovery story.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe BICT was developed out of a pressing need identified&nbsp;by the cruise industry to ensure that Brisbane, Queensland\u2019s&nbsp;capital, had a terminal able to accommodate the mega cruise&nbsp;ships (longer than 270 metres) that were seeking to call in the&nbsp;city,\u201d he says. \u201cBrisbane faced a challenge in that mega cruise&nbsp;ships had to call at the Port of Brisbane\u2019s cargo port and could&nbsp;not access the existing cruise facility further upstream.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Long-term solution<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline_image inline_image_right image_size_small fullsize\" data-attachment=\"293294\" data-sequence=\"6\"><button class=\"show-fullscreen\" data-url=\"\/attachment?attype=P&amp;atcode=293294&amp;storycode=1472726\">Show Fullscreen<\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"picture\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Neil Stephens, chief executive officer, Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL)\" src=\"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/01_293294_4_851863_crop.webp\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"lazyloaded wp-image-2330\" width=\"2384\" height=\"2754\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/01_293294_4_851863_crop.webp 1600w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/01_293294_4_851863_crop-260x300.webp 260w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/01_293294_4_851863_crop-887x1024.webp 887w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/01_293294_4_851863_crop-768x887.webp 768w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/01_293294_4_851863_crop-1330x1536.webp 1330w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2384px) 100vw, 2384px\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline_meta\">\n<p class=\"inline_title\">Neil Stephens<\/p>\n<p class=\"inline_source\"><cite>Source: Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL)<\/cite><\/p>\n<p class=\"inline_caption\">Neil Stephens, chief executive officer, Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>As the global cruise vessel fleet continued to increase in size,&nbsp;Brisbane risked being bypassed if it did not have a long-term&nbsp;solution to welcoming larger vessels.<\/p>\n<p>Working with government and cruise industry&nbsp;stakeholders, including government and the cruise industry,&nbsp;Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL) identified the most suitable&nbsp;site in Brisbane that could accommodate these larger&nbsp;vessels, at the mouth of the Brisbane River at Pinkenba.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom an economic and social perspective, our focus was&nbsp;on working with the cruise industry and government to&nbsp;design and deliver a facility that would support the cruise&nbsp;tourism industry now and help it to grow in the future.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy ensuring the terminal can accommodate the largest&nbsp;ocean-going vessels, that means the cruise industry will&nbsp;continue to call in Brisbane and bring with it the economic&nbsp;and tourism benefits that will support local jobs and related&nbsp;industries. We also have a formal partnership with local&nbsp;government to promote Brisbane tourism at the cruise&nbsp;terminal and have continued to liaise with the local residential&nbsp;community throughout the construction process.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Green design<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>From an environmental perspective, the BICT building&nbsp;incorporated sustainable design principles (developed&nbsp;collaboratively with PBPL\u2019s lead designer Arup and architect&nbsp;Arkhefield) that embrace Brisbane\u2019s subtropical climate and&nbsp;lifestyle and deliver positive sustainability outcomes.&nbsp;\u201cSustainability was considered well before construction,&nbsp;starting with the condition of the site itself,\u201d says Mr Stephens.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe cruise facility was developed on degraded greenfield&nbsp;land, so early challenges included increasing the resilience&nbsp;of the site to sea level rise and flooding, due to its geographic&nbsp;location on the Brisbane River.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This careful planning paid dividends during the severe&nbsp;February\/March 2022 flooding in Brisbane, with no impact to&nbsp;the terminal building or site despite the Brisbane River rises.&nbsp;Brisbane\u2019s subtropical climate was also a key factor that&nbsp;would impact a range of things including the building\u2019s&nbsp;design, material consumption, current and future energy use&nbsp;and, importantly, passenger comfort.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn terms of the building\u2019s design, significant consideration&nbsp;was given to the building\u2019s orientation, natural lighting and&nbsp;sun shading to maximise natural light and improve the user&nbsp;experience while reducing reliance on alternative energy&nbsp;sources and associated pollution,\u201d says Mr Stephens.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis was further supported by elements including natural&nbsp;ventilation used where possible, sub-tropical landscaping,&nbsp;water-sensitive design and living greenery to provide shade,&nbsp;cool public spaces and reduce the \u2018heat island\u2019 effect of the&nbsp;terminal area. We achieved a reduction in ongoing water use&nbsp;through rainwater harvesting providing water for amenities.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The building design and location also supports potential&nbsp;future expansion of both wharf and terminal facilities if it is&nbsp;required.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Greenfield site<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline_image inline_image_right image_size_med fullsize zoom\" data-attachment=\"259733\" data-sequence=\"2\"><button class=\"show-fullscreen\" data-url=\"\/attachment?attype=P&amp;atcode=259733&amp;storycode=1472726\">Show Fullscreen<\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"picture\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Port of Brisbane Greenfield Site\" src=\"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/02_259733_2_331287.webp\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"lazyloaded wp-image-2331\" width=\"8944\" height=\"5031\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/02_259733_2_331287.webp 1600w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/02_259733_2_331287-300x169.webp 300w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/02_259733_2_331287-1024x576.webp 1024w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/02_259733_2_331287-768x432.webp 768w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/02_259733_2_331287-1536x864.webp 1536w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/02_259733_2_331287-800x450.webp 800w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/02_259733_2_331287-400x225.webp 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 8944px) 100vw, 8944px\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline_meta\">\n<p class=\"inline_title\">Greenfield<\/p>\n<p class=\"inline_source\"><cite>Source: Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL)<\/cite><\/p>\n<p class=\"inline_caption\">A greenfield site was carefully chosen for construction of the Brisbane International Cruise Terminal.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The new site had to be able to access existing marine&nbsp;infrastructure such as naturally occurring deep water, a&nbsp;swing basin and navigation channels. This aspect of planning&nbsp;removed the need for capital dredging and minimised&nbsp;impact on the surrounding natural environment.<\/p>\n<p>The greenfield site required significant fill and surcharging&nbsp;before construction could commence. Approximately&nbsp;300,000 cubic metres was placed across the site throughout&nbsp;this stage of works. PBPL was in a unique position to re-use&nbsp;dredge material from its existing dredging operations as fill,&nbsp;elevating the site to achieve appropriate levels and creating&nbsp;a stable base for the development.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor surcharging, we&nbsp;were able to utilise our dredge vessel, TSHD Brisbane, to&nbsp;place clean sand from existing channel maintenance&nbsp;dredging on the site,\u201d says Mr Stephens.<\/p>\n<p>The surcharge was removed and re-used on other PBPL&nbsp;development projects. A substantial amount of consideration&nbsp;was also given to energy use and capabilities \u2013 both now and&nbsp;into the future.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe building maximises natural ventilation, has energyand&nbsp;water-efficient appliances and fittings, and will utilise&nbsp;solar energy as its main power source when the building is&nbsp;fully operational.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>An 800kW rooftop solar system provides shaded car&nbsp;parking for passengers, while generating approximately&nbsp;1300MWh power annually and reducing the energy draw&nbsp;from the grid. Electric vehicle charging stations are also&nbsp;available for the public to use.<\/p>\n<p>Future energy integration has been incorporated into the&nbsp;base design, to enable future installation of additional solar&nbsp;panels and battery storage.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAlternate fuel types were&nbsp;considered during the design phase,\u201d says Mr Stephens. \u201cThe&nbsp;facility has been designed to enable future capability for LNG&nbsp;bunkering if and when a suitable supply is available in Australia&nbsp;and there is a demand from an LNG-capable vessel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Better connected<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline_image inline_image_right image_size_med fullsize zoom\" data-attachment=\"259734\" data-sequence=\"3\"><button class=\"show-fullscreen\" data-url=\"\/attachment?attype=P&amp;atcode=259734&amp;storycode=1472726\">Show Fullscreen<\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"picture\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Plaza area at the Brisbane International Cruise Terminal\" src=\"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/03_259734_3_462929.webp\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"lazyloaded wp-image-2332\" width=\"5101\" height=\"3402\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/03_259734_3_462929.webp 1600w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/03_259734_3_462929-300x200.webp 300w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/03_259734_3_462929-1024x683.webp 1024w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/03_259734_3_462929-768x512.webp 768w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/03_259734_3_462929-1536x1024.webp 1536w, https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/03_259734_3_462929-600x400.webp 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 5101px) 100vw, 5101px\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline_meta\">\n<p class=\"inline_title\">Plaza<\/p>\n<p class=\"inline_source\"><cite>Source: Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL)<\/cite><\/p>\n<p class=\"inline_caption\">Plaza area at the Brisbane International Cruise Terminal.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>In terms of its location, the BICT is ideally located only 15&nbsp;minutes from Brisbane Airport with local roads providing&nbsp;easy access. It is also located only 15 minutes to major&nbsp;&nbsp;suburbs). As it is located on the river, there are potential&nbsp;future opportunities for river connectivity. Mr Stephens says&nbsp;there will be continued engagement with government&nbsp;regarding future connectivity opportunities by river as well&nbsp;as other transport connections.<\/p>\n<p>Geographically, the BICT is located away from the main&nbsp;cargo port, which is on the opposite side of the Brisbane&nbsp;River. Before the BICT\u2019s construction, cruise ships that called&nbsp;at the Port of Brisbane had to share the grain berth with&nbsp;agricultural customers. As a dedicated facility for cruise, the&nbsp;new terminal has freed up capacity at the Port\u2019s agricultural&nbsp;berth and ensures there is no compromise in the design and&nbsp;use of the BICT with other cargo types.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne of the major benefits that PBPL is exploring is the&nbsp;addition of the BICT\u2019s 800kW solar to our existing solar&nbsp;system network on PBPL-managed buildings,\u201d says Mr&nbsp;Stephens. \u201cAs the largest solar installation by PBPL to date,&nbsp;this system produces a significant amount of renewable&nbsp;energy which we are currently distributing to other PBPLoperated&nbsp;sites through a virtual energy network.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This in turn&nbsp;will reduce reliance on grid energy and subsequently help&nbsp;cut Scope 2 carbon emissions.<\/p>\n<p>Significant focus was put into ensuring the facility would&nbsp;enable safe and efficient operations during its lifetime. \u201cAs&nbsp;the asset manager, our primary role is to provide a facility&nbsp;that meets the needs of the cruise industry both now and&nbsp;well into the future,\u201d says Mr Stephens. \u201cA key part of this was&nbsp;understanding how to optimise passenger and cargo flows,&nbsp;as well as building flexibility into the facility to enable it to&nbsp;adapt to future changes in the industry. This should position&nbsp;the terminal well to grow with the local cruise tourism&nbsp;industry for decades to come.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The potential benefits of the BICT on growing Queensland\u2019s&nbsp;cruise industry are significant, he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cImportantly and as a&nbsp;first step, we believe the BICT is primed to be the epicentre&nbsp;of Australia\u2019s cruise recovery story.&nbsp;\u201cLooking ahead over 20 years post-Covid, the BICT has the&nbsp;potential to triple Brisbane\u2019s cruise industry to support 3750&nbsp;jobs, bring over 760,000 visitors annually and contribute $1.3&nbsp;billion in net expenditure to the Brisbane&nbsp;economy. This will support the cruise tourism&nbsp;industry not just in Brisbane but throughout&nbsp;South East Queensland and Queensland more&nbsp;broadly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>PBPL also has a formal partnership with the&nbsp;local government to promote regional tourism&nbsp;and is exploring opportunities to support&nbsp;Indigenous cultural tourism and&nbsp;regional economic and education&nbsp;activities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A new green cruise terminal development at the Port of Brisbane is confirming the port\u2019s\u00a0emerging identity as a significant player in the Australian cruise market.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":2329,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[75],"tags":[175,296,493],"sponsor":[],"class_list":["post-2328","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cruise-greenport","tag-australia","tag-cruise","tag-greenfield"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2328","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2328"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2328\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2333,"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2328\/revisions\/2333"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2329"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2328"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2328"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2328"},{"taxonomy":"sponsor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portstrategy.com\/greenport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sponsor?post=2328"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}