Defence turns back boats at Garden Island, Sydney

EXCLUSIVE: The congestion crisis plaguing Sydney’s valuable cruise industry is set to worsen after Defence revealed it will likely host fewer ships at Garden Island.

Queen Mary 2 sails into Sydney Harbour. Picture: Jenny Evans

THE congestion crisis plaguing Sydney’s valuable cruise industry is set to worsen after Defence revealed it will likely host fewer ships at Garden Island — piling more pressure on the state government to come up with urgent alternatives.

Defence is turning back the boats at Garden Island because it is renovating the navy base over the next two years.

It accepts three cruise ships a year at the Potts Point docks — but this will be cut as the $213 million renovations begin.

“Availability of Garden Island berths is very limited and this will be exacerbated when significant works occur at Garden Island to keep pace with the introduction of new capabilities for the navy,” Defence told The Saturday Telegraph.

“These works will impact on berth availability during the construction period.”

The cruise industry, worth $2.9 billion a year to NSW, is facing a crisis on Sydney Harbour because there is no space left for ships. The lack of dock space is already costing Sydney millions, with two major ships choosing to base themselves in Melbourne over the next couple of years.

The cruise industry, worth $2.9 billion a year to NSW, is facing a crisis on Sydney Harbour. Picture: Jenny Evans

Every time a cruise ship docks, it is worth about $1 million to the local economy ­including money spent by ­visiting passengers and on replenishing the vessel’s supplies.

It comes as fresh evidence emerges of the cruise industry’s value to NSW, with P&O revealing it intends to spend around $100 million this year on produce from Australian farms, including nearly 100,000kg of lamb from a Dubbo property. The company also buys 6.2 million eggs a year from Australian farms, 410,000 litres of milk, 125,000kg of cheese and 4.7 million kilos of fruit and vegetables.

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Ann Sherry, executive chairman of Carnival, parent company of P&O, said the Garden Island upgrade is “an opportunity to consider the certainty of long-term access for cruise ships and to solve Sydney Harbour’s congestion problem”.

A spokesman for Maritime and Ports Minister Melinda Pavey said no cruise ships had docked at Garden Island since 2013.

“The NSW government is working closely with a range of stakeholders on a long-term plan,” he said.