Status
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Background
Pacific National Pty Ltd is proposing to develop a new freight logistics precinct at Little River. The site is east of the Little River township, south of the existing interstate rail corridor and north of the Princes Freeway. Little River is approximately 44 kilometres (km) south-west of the Melbourne Central Business District (CBD), with the project site located in the Wyndham City Council Local Government Area and on Wadawurrung Country.
The project's components will be built stages across a period of more than 25 years, with the timing of each stage subject to growth in rail freight and demand for logistics warehousing. A total of eight construction phases are proposed, including the rehabilitation and ongoing management of the biodiversity conservation area. Stage 1 construction is scheduled to commence in 2026 (subject to Pacific National obtaining the relevant approvals), with completion expected in first quarter of 2030 resulting in a four-year construction period. It is expected that the final year of construction will be around 2050.
The primary development area includes the following key components:
- An open-access, interstate, intermodal terminal. This will be a licensed Major Hazards Facility.
- An open-access, import/export (IMEX) intermodal terminal
- A terminal administration/operations centre
- Locomotive provisioning and wagon maintenance facilities
- Holding tracks, staging lines and arrival/departure tracks to manage the loading and unloading of trains
- Warehousing, including integrated Cargolink warehousing, and offices totalling approximately 950,000 metres2
- Complementary uses, including commercial activities and support services
- Electricity substation
- A biodiversity conservation offset area adjacent to the proposed facility to enhance and protect areas of environmental value.
Components considered ancillary works outside of the primary development area, but to be investigated as part of the project, are composed of:
- Rail connections to the Western Freight Line with rail bridges (flyovers) over the Melbourne-Geelong passenger railway
- Connection to an existing water main in Little River Road adjacent to the site, with potential upgrading of the main in the future (if required)
- Connection to existing Telstra services in Little River Road adjacent to the site
- A new sewer rising main (5.6 km) to be co-located with the water main where practicable
- Two new, 42 km electrical feeder lines between the existing Geelong substation and the proposed onsite electrical substation
- External public road network upgrades to accommodate the increased traffic generated by the project.
EES preparation
Consultation plan
Pacific National is preparing a consultation plan for the EES, outlining the opportunities and approaches for its community engagement during the preparation of the EES.
The Consultation plan will be published and available here once reviewed by the TRG (see below).
Technical reference group
The Department has convened an inter-agency technical reference group to advise the proponent and the Department, as appropriate, on scoping and adequacy of the EES studies during the preparation of the EES, as well as coordination with statutory approval processes.
The government organisations represented on the technical reference group are:
- Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) – Port Phillip Region
- Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) – Planning
- Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) – Freight Victoria
- First Peoples – State Relations
- Heritage Victoria
- EPA Victoria
- DTP – Transport
- Melbourne Water
- Wyndham City Council.
Pacific National and the DTP - Impact Assessment Unit are also engaging with the Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation (WTOAC), the Registered Aboriginal Party (RAP) for Wadawurrung country, throughout EES preparation.
Technical reference group representatives are supported by internal experts on specific aspects of the EES studies.
Scoping requirements
The scoping requirements set out the matters to be investigated and documented in the environment effects statement (EES). Draft scoping requirements for this EES will be prepared by DTP and placed on public exhibition through Engage Victoria.
The Draft scoping requirements are currently being prepared. This page will be updated with the exhibition dates and a link to the Engage Victoria when available.
Minister's decision
In December 2023, the Minister for Planning required Pacific National to prepare an environment effects statement (EES) under the Environment Effects Act 1978 to assess the potential environmental effects of the project.
The EES is being undertaken as an accredited process set out in the bilateral agreement under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). It will have to assess the relevant matters of national environmental significance identified in the Commonwealth decision that the project is a 'controlled action' requesting approval under the EPBC Act.
Project contact
If you have any questions about the scoping requirements or EES process contact the Impact Assessment Unit. For any questions about the Little River Logistics Precinct project please contact the project proponent, Pacific National, as per below.
Little River Logistics Precinct Project
Pacific National Pty Ltd
☎ Phone: (03) 9021 0612
Page last updated: 26/06/24