Sea freight and ports

Please see our publications page for the COAG Review of Western Australian Ports - Final Report, January 2009 and the various submissions received in response to the Issues Paper July 2008.

Welcome to the Sea Freight and Ports section of iMarine. Here you will find information about the important strategic role ports play in the economic growth of Western Australia and the work being carried out by the Sea Freight Council and the WA Port Operations Taskforce.

 

Optimising our port infrastructure and planning for growth

On 23 May 2011, Transport Minister Troy Buswell confirmed that Fremantle's Inner Harbour will continue supporting Western Australia's long term growth by remaining a "working port" into the future.

Fremantle Port is one of Western Australia's most critically important pieces of infrastructure and is recognised as the State's key trade gateway and a significant driver of Western Australia's economy.

The Minister also confirmed the Government's commitment to the development of new container handling port facilities in Cockburn Sound.

Given the number of strategic port, industry and utility interests in that area, the Minister announced the Western Australian Planning Commission would conduct an overall planning assessment of the environmental, transport, planning and community issues associated with strategic port and industry development in the Kwinana Industrial Area.

Ports in Western Australia

Western Australia (WA) is the nation's largest export State.

Eight port authorities and numerous other maritime facilities are located along 12,500 kilometres of the Western Australian coastline. They handle over 4000 international trading vessels plus thousands of interstate, intrastate, fishing and recreational vessels every year.

The Port of Fremantle is the biggest and busiest general cargo port in WA. It operates from two locations – the Inner Harbour at Fremantle and the Outer Harbour, 15 kilometres south at Kwinana. Fremantle Port handles 83% by value of the WA's seaborne imports and 25% by value of WA's seaborne exports.

The Pilbara ports of Dampier, Port Hedland and Cape Lambert are world leaders in mineral and gas exports.

Bunbury, Esperance and Geraldton also handle mineral exports, with the addition of grain exports and manufactured exports such as alumina.

Grain exports dominate Albany's trade currently, but future mineral and wood-chip shipments are anticipated. Fremantle, the State's main general cargo and container port, handles a wide variety of bulk and non-bulk commodities.

Role of the Department

With the prominence of the export sector to the state's economy and the large distances to many overseas and interstate markets, Western Australia is highly dependent on safe, reliable and effective shipping services.

The Department assists Government and industry in achieving this goal by formulating and implementing suitable policies.

The Department provides funding for the Sea Freight Council and the WA Port Operation Taskforce.

Freight and Logistics Council

The Freight & Logistics Council of Western Australia has been established.

Sea Freight Council

The Sea Freight Council has been wound up and its functions taken over by a broad freight policy group that considers all modes, the Freight and Logistics Council of Western Australia.

WA Port Operation Taskforce

The State Government formed the Western Australian Port Operations Task Force in 1987 to ensure that a Western Australian voice was heard in national waterfront reform policy-making processes. The role of the Task Force is to identify operational impediments to the efficient passage of goods and vessels through Western Australian ports, and determine practical measures to overcome those impediments.

Port-related projects and studies

For downloadable copies of port-related studies undertaken by the Department please refer to Publications.

Fremantle Ports (http://www.fremantleports.com.au/) provides a wealth of information on the inner and outer harbour development projects.

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