WITH the privatised Port of Newcastle still wanting to build a container terminal, the NSW government appears to think Newcastle is too far away from Sydney to handle the imported building products that are needed to feed the capital city's building boom.
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Although Port Botany, like Newcastle, has been privatised, the port of Sydney has not, and its facilities are operated by the Maritime Authority of NSW.
In the budget papers, the government says it is proposing to build a multi-purpose terminal at Glebe Island in Sydney Harbour to import the bulk materials feeding the capital city's building boom.
"This (terminal) will play a vital role in Sydney’s concrete supply chain," budget paper 1 says. "Curently, most materials involved in concrete production are delivered to Sydney by road. With demand for concrete in Sydney expected to continue to increase as a result of large infrastructure projects including WestConnex and Sydney Metro West, the new facility will improve supply chain efficiency and lower the number of trucks on the road, helping to reduce congestion on the road network."
The terminal is forecast to be operating in the fourth quarter of 2019.
No cost figures were given in the budget papers, although they confirmed an estimated $465,000 in spending before June 30.
Ironically, as a result of the government's ports privatisation program, it has used the Newcastle Port Corporation as a corporate structure to house the remaining state owned port services. So although Port Authority of NSW is the trading name of the entity building the Glebe Island terminal. its proper name is the Newcastle Port Corporation.