Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has made the trip to Moorebank to open the intermodal precinct’s new terminal, marking an important milestone in the federal government’s commitment to build a sustainable national supply chain.
The Moorebank Intermodal Terminal is the nation’s first major metropolitan ‘independent’ interstate terminal, operating under an open access arrangement and not controlled by a single existing above rail operator.
“The opening of the Moorebank Interstate Terminal is a major milestone in the development of the broader precinct that will create and support Australian jobs, while improving the efficiency of supply chains,” Albanese says.
“We want to see a future made in Australia and having the key infrastructure in place will play a huge role in supporting more good, well paying Aussie jobs.
“The new terminal will play an important role in improving travel for Sydneysiders taking more than 3,000 heavy trucks off Sydney roads daily. That means less time spent on the roads and more time with family and friends.
“The Moorebank Intermodal Precinct demonstrates how government leadership and co-investment with industry can deliver world class infrastructure assets resulting in significant value for future generations.”
The site will be able to manage 500,000 twenty-foot containers annually, with each train that comes through the terminal able to move 1,500 tonnes of freight.
Each of the 1,800 metre trains the Interstate Terminal can accommodate has the potential to remove 100 b-double trucks from Australia’s roads, easing congestion.
This will help the movement of rail freight between cities and regions and help drive efficiency and competition across the national freight network which will ultimately flow onto savings for businesses and consumers.
“The new Interstate Terminal connects the Precinct to the interstate rail and road network – including the future Inland Rail project – enabling movement of vital consumer goods between Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth,” federal transport and infrastructure minister Catherine King says.
“The Interstate Terminal is the cornerstone of the Moorebank Intermodal Precinct, providing for the servicing of trains up to 1,800-metre-long, directly adjacent to modern warehouse facilities and last mile delivery services.”
When complete, the fully integrated industrial precinct at Moorebank will house over 850,000 square meters of modern industrial warehouses and will support more than 6,800 jobs. It is also home to Australia’s largest rooftop solar installation with the capacity to generate over 100 megawatts of renewable energy.
The Moorebank Interstate Terminal is being developed as a joint venture between the federal government-owned National Intermodal Corporation, with Qube Holdings and LOGOS, with the federal government having committed $570 million towards the Intermodal Precinct.
National Intermodal CEO James Baulderstone says the precinct is Australia’s most modern intermodal site that sets a benchmark for the future of the nation’s supply chain.
“The Interstate Terminal has an open access arrangement that allows multiple rail operators to use the terminal, driving competition and delivering further cost savings to end users,” Baulderstone says.
“The precinct’s scale also provides the platform and location for major renewable energy generation, enabling warehouse owners and last mile delivery transport companies to reach their net zero ambitions.”
Qube Holdings managing director Paul Digney says the logistics company is proud to have helped deliver the terminal.
“The delivery of this critical new asset will play a significant role in boosting rail’s share of freight, which is currently is only 11 per cent across the eastern seaboard,” Digney says.
“Getting more freight off the road and onto rail will be key to achieving Australia’s emissions reduction targets, especially given rail freight generates 16 times less carbon pollution than road, and this new Interstate Rail Terminal at Moorebank will be a key enabler in that transition.”