DP World expands Melbourne terminal

The Dubai, United Arab Emirates-based terminal operator expanded its terminal at the Port of Melbourne by 30,000 square meters, increasing the terminal’s handling capacity to 1.4 million TEUs a year.    DP World Australia’s expanded portion of its terminal at the Port of Melbourne was commissioned last week, DP World said.
   The expanded area, which comprises 30,000 square meters at the former Bentley Chemplax site, delivers an additional 450 ground slots or 100,000 TEUs of capacity a year, increasing the terminal’s total handling capacity to 1.4 million TEUs a year.
   Construction on the Bentley Chemplax project commenced in September 2015 and was in line with the original schedule by contractors Fulton Hogan. In addition, the project was delivered under budget.
   Currently, the expanded area is open for testing and will have its official opening at an event in April.
   “The additional capacity provides our customers with a greater level of service and increased productivity,” DP World Australia CEO Paul Scurrah said in a statement. “This will enable our Melbourne team to handle additional volumes and offer improved truck turn times, as fewer consolidated moves will be required at the terminal.”
   Overall, the development represents the terminal’s largest expansion project since 2010. Following the Bentley Chemplax project, the terminal will begin its next expansion phase with the partial closure and redevelopment of Coode Road, scheduled to commence this year. However, this project is still subject to approval from the Port of Melbourne.