The Port of Hastings Development Authority is an authority of the Government of Victoria, Australia. The authority is responsible for the development and management of the port of Hastings located in Western Port Bay approximately 72 kilometres to the south east of Melbourne. The port is expected to be developed by the authority as a major new container port in competition with the Port of Melbourne, Australia's busiest container port.
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Establishment of the authority
The Port of Hastings Development Authority was established under the Transport Integration Act and commenced operation on 1 January 2012. The Act provides that the object of the agency is to—
More broadly, the functions of the authority are—
Reasons for establishing the authority
The Port of Hastings Development Authority was established under changes made to the Transport Integration Act, Victoria's central transport statute, by the Transport Legislation Amendment (Port of Hastings Development Authority Act) 2011. The Minister for Ports, the Hon Denis Napthine MLA introduced the legislation into the Victorian Parliament on 1 June 2011. He indicated to the Parliament that the Bill for the Act "...sets Melbourne's commercial ports on a path to faster growth through increased capacity and competition in the container ports sector. The Bill establishes a new independent Port of Hastings Development Authority as a key first step in fast-tracking the development of Hastings as a future container port. Dr Napthine went on to say that—
Day to day management of port and channels
The Port of Hastings Authority administers a Port Management Agreement (Port of Hastings) for the port. The agreement provides that day-to-day operation of the port is contracted out by the authority to Patrick Ports Hastings, a division of Asciano Ltd. Patrick provides management services for the Port of Hastings, including Long Island Point, Crib Point and Stony Point jetties and approaches. Patrick is required under the terms of the agreement to maintain the condition of the property and infrastructure within the port. The operation of the channels in Western Port is also the responsibility of Patrick Ports Hastings. Another Victorian transport agency, the Victorian Reguional Channels Authority, oversees the channel licences for the port.
Current trade
The Port of Hastings Development Authority reports that around 250 ship visits are recorded each year at the port of Hastings with ships ranging in size up to 165,000 tonnes. Around 4 million tonnes of petroleum product is handled annually through the port and around 1.2 million tonnes per annum of steel product.
Environmental considerations
Western Port is as an area that offers significant environmental values that are recognised worldwide. The authority has advised that—
Controversy over management and development of the port
The management and development of the port of Hastings has been a controversial State and local issue for some years.
In 2010 before the creation of the Port of Hastings Development Authority, the former Brumby Labor Government conferred responsibility for management and development of the port of Hastings on the Port of Melbourne Corporation at the same time abolishing the former Port of Hastings Corporation, the agency which had previously managed the port for some years. The "port corporations" at that time - the Port of Melbourne Corporation, the Port of Hastings Corporation and the Victorian Regional Channels Authority - were originally not included in the Government's Transport Integration Act proposal but were added later to that statute by the Transport Legislation Amendment (Ports Integration) Bill 2010 (the Ports Integration Bill).
The Ports Integration Bill was strongly opposed in the Victorian Parliament by the Liberal and National parties, predominantly on competition grounds, and by the Greens for environmental reasons. The Bill was defeated in the upper house of the Victorian Parliament, the Legislative Council, but was later passed due to the use of a dispute resolution procedure under the Victorian Constitution. The Council originally defeated the Bill on 22 June 2010. However, on 24 June 2010 the Legislative Assembly referred the bill to the Dispute Resolution Committee of the Parliament. The Assembly returned the bill to the Council for its agreement as recommended by the Dispute Resolution Committee on 27 July 2010. The Legislative Council ultimately rescinded its resolution defeating the second reading of the Bill and the Bill passed on 12 August 2010. The Ports Integration Bill merged the Port of Melbourne Corporation and the former Port of Hastings Corporation under a rebadged Port of Melbourne Corporation banner. The Ports Integration Bill was ultimately proclaimed to commence on 1 September 2010. This formally brought the Port of Melbourne Corporation and the Victorian Regional Channels Authority within the Transport Integration Act framework on that date.
These developments were, however, largely reversed by the Transport Legislation Amendment (Port of Hastings Development Authority Act) 2011 which created the current Port of Hastings Development Authority and took away the Port of Melbourne Corporation's responsibilities for the port.
The port development remains a controversial issue. It is supported by the State Government but opposed by many others. A Preserve Western Port Action Group is actively contesting State government claims on economic, social and environmental grounds. Environmental groups are also against the proposed expansion. and the Victorian Greens.