Melbourne Airport invests billions to boost Victorian jobs

A $1billion two year program of investment by Melbourne Airport will create more than 3,000 ongoing and construction jobs.

The largest private infrastructure investment of its kind, the two year program is part of Melbourne Airport’s biggest transformation since it opened more than 40 years ago and will see up to $10 billion invested over 20 years.

Melbourne Airport CEO, Mr. Chris Woodruff, said that Melbourne Airport and its associated operations were a major source of employment in Victoria.

“Victoria is growing and over the next 20 years we expect to double our passengers to 60 million. We’ve commenced the largest transformation of Melbourne Airport yet to make sure we’re ready to welcome passengers to our great state as we aim to become Australia’s premier airport.”

“Our operations currently support more than 57,000 jobs, either directly or indirectly, with this number expected to rise to 95,000 by 2033. Over the next two years alone, our $1 billion investment will create up to 3,000 additional construction and ongoing employment opportunities,” said Mr Woodruff.

“Victoria is also the proud home to two of Australia’s fastest growing low fare domestic airlines in Jetstar and Tigerair and to support their growth, we’re building a new dedicated domestic terminal, ground transport hub and additional aircraft parking bays.”

“Work recently commenced on the terminal and ground transport hub which will include pick-up and drop-off bays for the general public, a car park and facilities for taxis, buses and Skybus while works on the additional aircraft parking bays are well underway. These three contracts are worth almost $500 million alone and are significant parts of our redevelopment works, but we’re not stopping there.”

“We’re also transforming our international terminal providing more space and improved processes as well as making significant upgrades to our internal road network to improve congestion.”

Mr Woodruff said that Melbourne’s Airport significant international passenger growth had also driven growth in freight.

“Our operations are also vital in keeping Victoria connected to the rest of the world. Melbourne Airport is the freight gateway for Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and southern New South Wales, and it’s all underpinned by our curfew free operations.”

“By keeping Victoria connected, we’re also providing invaluable opportunities for our exporters particularly for time sensitive, high value products such as fresh seafood and meat which are key export products to our growth markets including the Middle East and Asia.”

“To support the state government’s vision of becoming Asia’s food bowl, we’re also investing in our freight and logistics facilities including increasing freight apron capacity and facilities in our business park where we are proud to have five of the top ten global freight companies as tenants.”

“Melbourne Airport is a critical piece of state infrastructure and our investment in our facilities and roads will further strengthen our contribution to Victoria’s economic and social well-being,” said Mr Woodruff.

Melbourne Airport currently contributes $1.47 billion to Victoria’s Gross State Product (GSP) with this forecast to rise to $3.2 billion by 2033.

Mr Woodruff said that recent surveys undertaken as part of the Master Plan process showed that the local community recognised the significant role of Melbourne Airport as a key economic and employment driver for the state.

“We are very proud to be a part of Melbourne’s north-west community and are also proud to be a major employer within the region with nearly 10,000 jobs in our local communities directly related to our operations. Our local community should be justifiably proud of the contribution they’re making to Australia’s second busiest airport and the vitality of our state economy.”

“I’m looking forward to working with our local councils to continue to further strengthen the ties between the local community and Melbourne Airport. We do however recognise that there are concerns within the community regarding future airport developments and we’ll continue to consult with the community as we progress through the formal approval process for these developments.”