The Melbourne View: We will be engaging

GreenPort Congress	World Ports Conference	Coastlink Conference

GreenPort Congress is a meeting place for the port community to discuss and learn the latest in sustainable environmental practice. It offers ways to reduce their carbon foot print and be more sensitive to environmental considerations, both of which are vital to future success.	The annual World Ports Conference brings together global port leaders and key stakeholders from the shipping sectors to explore the opportunities and challenges facing the maritime industry. This year’s #IAPH2026 will be held in London, UK, offering a programme of plenary, breakout and workshop sessions and a gala dinner celebrating the IAPH Sustainability Awards.	Coastlink is a neutral pan-European network dedicated to the promotion of short sea and feeder shipping, and the intermodal transport networks through the ports that support the sector. It is a place for industry professionals to meet and discuss future innovation, economic and environmental considerations – and develop partnerships that will help build a sustainable future.
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The Port of Melbourne has welcomed the release of the Productivity Commission’s draft report.

“We support an industry-wide inquiry into optimising productivity and efficiency in the maritime supply chain,” Saul Cannon, CEO, told Port Strategy.

“We’ll be further engaging with the Commission to ensure a robust evidence base from the efficiency and productivity debate and developing a shared focus on the infrastructure requirements to support our economy and evolving industry needs.” Port of Melbourne is considering in detail the specific findings and recommendations of the draft report and will respond accordingly in its submission to the final report, he added.

“We have great respect for the regulatory framework that the Victorian Government put in place at the time of the port lease in 2016 and we strongly believe the framework is working as intended,” says Cannon. “Infrastructure investment inside the port gate is, of course, critical – we have an anticipated $2bn 10+ year plan to meet the capacity needs of the port. That’s on top of the more than $400m we’ve already invested over the past almost six years.”

Port of Melbourne has a 50-year lease from the Victorian Government to manage and enhance operations at the port: “Port of Melbourne operates the port within a context of stringent statutory, regulatory and contractual commitments,” he notes.

A spokesperson added: “Port of Melbourne is the only Australian port, and only part of the container freight supply chain, that is price regulated. The regulated regime at the Port of Melbourne is working as intended. Since privatisation, Port of Melbourne has invested over $400 million in infrastructure and port prices have been maintained each year in line with CPI consistent with the Tariff Adjustment Limit.”

Port of Melbourne has a 30-year Port Development Strategy that: “responds to Victoria’s future trade needs and outlines investment in 10 major infrastructure projects”.

Cannon concludes: “We are committed to solidifying our position as Australia’s premier port, being a destination of choice for the global supply chain, and the launching pad to the global stage for our exporters. It’s about ensuring that we have the right infrastructure in the right place at the right time to deliver for Victoria.”