Perth’s newest intermodal terminal has been officially opened in Kenwick today and is set to be a critical piece of infrastructure for growing rail volumes through Fremantle Port and the future Westport.
The Kenwick Intermodal Terminal (IMT) is a strategic investment by Arc Infrastructure that provides an immediate increase in inland IMT capacity and removes the current constraint that has effectively capped rail share of import/export containers at 20%.
The Kenwick IMT will enable rail share to grow towards 30-50%, in line with the State Government’s long-term target.
The project was made possible through an agreement with the Federal and State Governments, who contributed $10 million towards the $25 million project. The official opening was attended by Federal Minister for Transport the Hon. Catherine King MP and WA Deputy Premier the Hon. Rita Saffioti MLA, as well as Federal Member for Burt the Hon. Matt Keogh MP and State Member for Forrestfield Mr Stephen Price MLA.
The Kenwick IMT will be operated by Intermodal Group and has a throughput capacity of over 200,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) with additional capacity for an empty container park. A dedicated rail fleet operated by Watco Australia offers capacity of up to
100 TEU per service, initially running a daily weekday service with the ability to add additional services as volume through the terminal grows.
Chief Executive Officer Murray Cook said the project was a great example of collaboration with Government to achieve the common goal of increasing rail modal share.
“Arc Infrastructure has collaborated with the WA State Government over many years in developing a shared intermodal strategy. Kenwick is the first new IMT in line with that strategy and will have an immediate and profound impact on the capacity to move containers through Fremantle Port and onto rail, and support the future Westport,” Murray said.
Federal Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Minister Catherine King said the Government was pleased to be involved in the project.
“Improving the efficiency and resilience of our supply chains, particularly in Western Australia, is a major priority for the Albanese Labor Government.
“Western Australia continues to be a big driver of the national economy, and ensuring freight movement is as efficient as possible will continue to grow the economy and create new jobs for Western Australians.”
Deputy Premier Rita Saffioti welcomed the opening of the Kenwick IMT to support the State’s long-term transport needs.
“The opening of the Kenwick IMT is a great step forward our Government’s plans to build an efficient and resilient supply chain that can stand up to future demand.
“We have made it a strategic priority to increase the volume of freight on rail because we know it improves efficiency and safety, while reducing traffic congestion and vehicle emissions.
“Our Westport planning has shown that containerised freight will grow significantly in the coming decades and the Kenwick IMT gives us a welcome capacity injection into our network.
“Hundreds of thousands of shipping containers can be moved via rail through this facility, freeing up our road network and establishing a logistics hub to support our State’s long-term freight transport needs,” the Deputy Premier said.
As the operator of the new terminal, Intermodal Group Vice President Adam Lebihan is pleased to be commencing operations.
“Intermodal Group are excited to bring the Kenwick IMT online to complement and expand our existing operations at Forrestfield, Rockingham and North Quay. Working with our rail provider, Watco Australia, we will continue to partner with customers and grow freight on rail in the Perth metro area.
The Kenwick IMT is located within Arc’s Kenwick Rail Freight Facility and connects to the adjacent Roe Highway Logistics Park (RHLP) and other soon to be developed industrial land. It is well connected to the industrial warehouse precinct of Welshpool and Kewdale, with RAV7 trucking access for last mile deliveries.
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