DP World Australia's new 30,000 sqm Melbourne terminal expansion, at the former Bentley Chemplax site, was commissioned on Tuesday (15 March 2016), signalling the start of a suite of capital investment projects in 2016 - 17. The completion of the Bentley Chemplax site delivers an additional 450 ground slots or 100,000 TEU (twenty - foot equivalent unit) of cont ainer capacity per annum, increasing the capacity of the terminal to 1.4m TEU per annum.
The development is the terminal’s largest expansion project since 2010, and represents the first in a series of new investments in DP World Australia’s hardstand infra structure, yard equipment and wharf assets.
Construction commenced in September 2015 and the project was delivered under budget and in line with the original schedule by contractors, Fulton Hogan, despite difficult ground conditions and construction adjacent to an operating terminal. Following the Bentley Chemplax project, the Melbourne terminal will enter its next expansion phase, with the partial closure and redevelopment of Coode Road (subject to Port of Melbourne approv al) scheduled to commence in 2016. The Bentley Chemplax investment highlights DP World Australia’s commitment to investing in its terminals to improve its customer service offering.