Future Ports

A $100M “mega ship” facility is in the planning stages by the Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL).

The terminal, proposed for the mouth of the Brisbane River, is being developed to meet the global trend to superliners.

By 2020, 62% of cruise vessels in the Aussie market are expected to be over 270m in length.

A Demand Study Update has been commissioned by Ports North to forecast the increased number of cruise ship visits to Cairns along with the emerging changes in the cruise industry again including increased vessel length.

In Tasmania, significant upgrades are being undertaken to improve capacity at the ports of Hobart and Burnie. Both projects will be completed by October for the 2016/17 cruise season when 89 cruise vessels are booked to arrive – up from 55 last season.

In NSW, the State Government’s Cruise Development Plan has begun that will take into consideration the development of a third berth in Sydney which now receives almost one third of all cruise ships that berth in Australia.

Work has also started on a $1.2m shaded walkway that will allow passengers to stroll from the Cruise Ship Terminal to the Darwin Waterfront Precinct in comfort, to be completed mid-2016. The walkway will cater for a growing cruise industry in the Top End which currently delivers around 70,000 passengers a year.

ACA welcomes this infrastructure boom as it heralds exciting times ahead for the Australian cruise industry.