Interest sought for new Oz terminal

The project represents a milestone because it will bring together the public and private sectors in the delivery of what is a significant infrastructure project aimed at delivering greater freight efficiency and competitiveness. It should see efficiency improvements across the whole of the supply chain.

It is hoped the project will generate around AUS$10bn in economic benefits through reduced freight costs, traffic congestion and emissions. The government says that the new terminal will remove 1.2m trucks per year from Sydney’s roads because there are opportunities to develop warehousing on site directly linked to the intermodal terminal – potentially avoiding the need to transfer some containers by road.

The site is 220ha and 2km long, which means it is large enough to handle both import-export trains and interstate trains, which can be as long as 1.8km. It sits adjacent to a number of the east coast of Australia’s most important freight arteries – the Southern Sydney Freight Line – which is a dedicated freight rail line linked to the national rail network.

An MIC spokesperson said to Port Strategy that the site of the Moorebank intermodal terminal is “strategically located in south west Sydney which is the destination for almost two-thirds of the metropolitan containerised freight entering Sydney.”

What’s more, it’s positioned to become a major freight hub in the region with good road transport links to a number of large warehousing precincts and growing industrial centres.

The spokesperson added that early engagement with industry stakeholders indicates there is “widespread recognition of the project’s necessity and strong interest in participation.”

The terminal is scheduled to open for operations in late 2017.