Adelaide Airport in huge land release at freight and logistics hub

Adelaide Airport is forging ahead with its largest land release in more than 20 years as part of the next stage of a new business hub.

Artist's impression of the latest land release at Adelaide Airport's Airport Junction precinct. Picture: Supplied by Adelaide Airport

Adelaide Airport is forging ahead with its largest land release in more than 20 years as part of the next stage of its Airport Junction industrial and logistics hub at the eastern edge of the airport precinct.

The airport has released to the market 27ha of land on the western side of Brownhill Creek – representing its largest single land release since 2002 and one of the largest inner metropolitan development sites to be offered to the market over the past two decades.

It follows last year’s completion of new facilities in the Airport Junction precinct for logistics and shipping giants FedEx and DHL.

Adelaide Airport executive general manager – property, James Sangster, said the new development site offered direct freight access to the main international and domestic terminal via the airside road network in under four minutes.

A B-double connection will also be created, connecting Airport Junction with the North-South corridor via Richmond Rd.

A map showing Adelaide Airport's Airport Junction precinct, including the new section marked for sale. Picture: Supplied by Adelaide Airport

“Airport Junction will be Adelaide’s new economic powerhouse, designed for the future of freight and logistics, with a total project value at completion in the region of $250m facilitating the creation of up to 1800 jobs,” he said.

“It will be development-ready and scalable to meet the diverse requirements of freight and logistics companies.

“We’re currently seeking expressions of interest for multiple sites ranging from one to 10ha

in size. These opportunities extend from full turnkey development to tenant-specific premises projects managed by Adelaide Airport, to long term ground leases.”

A new 19,000sq m state headquarters for Beaumont Tiles is currently under development at the Airport Junction precinct, where FedEx and DHL have opened freight processing facilities stretching across 59,000sq m and 20,000sq m respectively.

Airfreight handled through Adelaide Airport is currently valued at around $1.5bn a year.

Adelaide Airport head of property development Shimon Spina said the state government’s recently-released Freight and Supply Chain Strategy identified the importance of increasing direct airfreight access into and out of Adelaide, and to reduce leakage of airfreight via other Australian ports such as Melbourne and Sydney.

FedEx’s $50m ‘Superhub’ at Airport Junction. Picture: Supplied by FedEx

“In 2023, 21 per cent of airfreight imports and 70 per cent of airfreight exports moved via road links to interstate airports to access direct flights,” Mr Spina said.

“We want to create opportunities for this freight to travel through Adelaide Airport direct to key markets the quickest way possible rather than having to travel by road to interstate ports.

“To do this we’re working to increase capacity through more international services, but we’re also investing in the necessary on-airport freight and logistics infrastructure to improve supply chain efficiency.”

Adelaide Airport has a sizeable land bank remaining for future development, with about 100ha – including Airport Junction – at Adelaide Airport, and a further 100ha at Parafield Airport.

A recent report by JLL and AsiaAustralis, commissioned by the Property Council, warned that Adelaide was facing a severe shortage of warehousing and logistics space across the city, more than 90 per cent of the 1500ha of vacant industrial land identified in a 2021 land supply report no longer available or not considered ‘development-ready’.