The Chamber of Minerals and Energy of WA (CME) and Kwinana Industries Council (KIC) are calling on the State Government to fund priority infrastructure upgrades for Perth's heavy industrial areas such as the Western Trade Coast.
The Kwinana Industrial Area, Rockingham Industry Zone, Latitude 32 General Industrial Area and Australian Marine Complex - collectively known as the Western Trade Coast - contribute $14.8 billion to the WA economy each year and support around 42,900 direct and indirect jobs.
However, these important industrial areas are now heavily constrained and significant investment is required to unlock additional land, upgrade road, rail and port capacity and improve energy and water connections.
In August last year the State Government released its own Western Trade Coast Infrastructure Strategy, which identified the priority upgrades needed to futureproof the area and set up the WA economy for the future.
CME Acting Chief Executive Officer Adrienne LaBombard said well-located, project ready land was vital to attract investment in the value-adding industries poised for substantial growth through the net zero energy transition.
"Access to turnkey industrial land is no longer a nice-to-have - it has become a prerequisite for major projects that have motivated suitors in countries across the globe," Ms LaBombard said.
"The Western Trade Coast is the heart of heavy industry in Perth but it is already full to bursting and that is without accounting for the projects in the pipeline.
"Added to this, the State's other identified industrial estates, from Kemerton right up to the Pilbara, are well short of project ready with limited transport infrastructure, port and rail capacity, utility connections as well as uncertainty over access to low-emission, reliable and affordable energy."
Five months after the release of the Western Trade Coast Infrastructure Strategy, KIC Chief Executive Officer David Harrison said none of the priority projects it identified had been funded.
He said industry was increasingly concerned inadequate infrastructure would impact the delivery of projects of State and national significant, including AUKUS and Westport.
"With more than $40 billion of new projects planned for the area over the coming decades, now is the time for the State Government to deliver its own infrastructure strategy for the area and support economic growth and diversification by ensuring local infrastructure, such as roads, railways and ports, are up to the task," Mr Harrison said.
"We have the plan, we know what is needed - now we need government to act."
