The triangle bounded by Kwinana, Fremantle and Kewdale is home to the bulk of manufacturing and heavy industry in Western Australia, so it is not surprising that’s where some of the State Government’s most difficult infrastructure issues are located.
The triangle bounded by Kwinana, Fremantle and Kewdale is home to the bulk of manufacturing and heavy industry in Western Australia, so it is not surprising that’s where some of the State Government’s most difficult infrastructure issues are located.
At the top of the issues list is the transport linkages between these locations, which have been problematic for many years.
Kwinana is also in the middle of an unusual building boom. Rio Tinto has recently completed its HIsmelt pig iron plant, BGC has built a new cement plant, the Water Corporation will soon start work on its desalination plant, and that will be followed by two new power stations and potentially two new cargo ports, all within a few hundred metres of each other.
The HIsmelt and BGC projects have already added to pressure on the ‘finger’ wharf at Kwinana, which Fremantle Ports is currently upgrading. But industry sources say the upgraded wharf will struggle to cope as production volumes rise at HIsmelt.
The competition between private company James Point, backed by BGC, and Fremantle Ports to build the next container port at Kwinana adds another intriguing dynamic to the planning issues at Kwinana.
However, the major current issue is the transporting of freight from Fremantle harbour to Perth’s industrial hinterland, in particular the large number of heavy trucks travelling along Leach Highway through residential areas.
To try and deal with the issue, the State Government developed a metropolitan freight strategy, which includes an upgrading of rail infrastructure at North Quay.
The aim is to get 15 per cent of freight onto rail, up from 2-3 per cent currently.
If the port authority reaches this ambitious goal it is likely to create another issue, as long freight trains trundle past residential apartments and restaurants in the west end of Fremantle.
Industry groups and the state Coalition believe the Government should proceed with the Fremantle eastern bypass and stage 8 of Roe Highway, but Planning and Infrastructure Minister Alannah MacTiernan has ruled out this option.
The Government’s tenuous grip on the issue was highlighted during the state election, when Ms MacTiernan surprised everyone by proposing that trucks be banned from using Leach Highway through the marginal electorate of Riverton.
The Transport Workers’ Union has since criticised this proposal, placing a big question mark over its viability.
In the longer term, Fremantle Ports has started planning for a second container port in Cockburn Sound to cope with the expected growth in freight volumes.
James Point, which is currently seeking planning approval for a general cargo wharf, also has plans for a container wharf, which would put it in direct competition with the port authority.
However, even when the new container ports are built, the port authority assumes that the existing harbour will continue to be fully utilised, so the transport issues along Leach Highway won’t go away.
Another issue around Kwinana is the lack of ‘high-wide-load’ corridors, which would enable engineering and fabrication companies to transport large loads from their workshops.
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry has been lobbying the State Government for several years to add to the existing corridor, between Kwinana and the heavy-duty wharf and assembly yard at the Australian Marine Complex at Henderson.
CCI director Bill Sashegyi said the chamber wanted the Government to build two further corridors, south to Bunbury and east to Welshpool and Kewdale, at an estimated cost of $20 million.
Mr Sashegyi said the trend towards modular construction of processing plants for resource projects added to the case for the corridors.
A prime example is the North West Shelf venture. Hitherto its gas processing plants have been built on-site, but in light of the shortage of skilled labour in the Pilbara, project operator Woodside has opted for off-site pre-assembly of fabricated modules for train 5.
As a result, local fabrication firms will be pitted against competing firms in countries such as Thailand and South Korea
“The time is nigh,” Mr Sashegyi said. “If we don’t have these corridors in place we will miss out.”
The CCI wants the Government to proceed with staged development of the corridors, in conjunction with the $140 million extension of the Tonkin Highway.
The CCI, with backing from 31 companies, engaged consulting firm Syme Marmion to study the number of ‘over-dimension’ loads in Perth and the benefits of the existing corridor.
It found the number of over-dimension load permits issued in WA has been growing by around 9 per cent a year.
Over the 18-month study period, permits were granted for 1,063 loads that were either greater than 6.5 metres wide or 6.5m high or greater than 30m long.
In all, 27 per cent of all over-dimension permit loads used the Kwinana to Henderson corridor.
Eighty-four of the movements on this corridor were in excess of either 9m high or 9m wide or 50m long.
Mr Sashegyi said these massive loads would not have been able to be accommodated without the establishment of the corridor.
The report estimates the corridor, which cost $2 million to establish, has generated direct benefits to the state’s economy of about $9 million a year.
