Argyle’s water trade win

Water market speculator Argyle Capital Partners has access to Victoria’s broker portal, allowing it to fast-track trades ahead of irrigators.

Victorian Farmers Federation water council chair Andrew Leahy says if he can’t trade water on the government’s high-speed broker portal, then should Argyle be given that right. PICTURE: ZOE PHILLIPS

Victorian Water Minister Harriet Shing has given one of Australia’s largest water speculators, Argyle Capital Partners, access to the state’s online broker portal, allowing it to fast-track trades ahead of ordinary irrigators.

The move allows Argyle to join brokers in using the portal to trade water, within seconds, out of the Goulburn Valley into the Murray, where it can be sold for a higher price.

The government allows only limited volumes of water to be traded from the Goulburn to Murray for two or three half-hour openings each year, with applications approved on a “first come, first served” basis.

During the last inter-valley trade opening on December 15, 48 brokers, traders and irrigators lodged applicants to move 61,328ML out of the Goulburn into the Murray.

But with trade-out capped at 12,200ML just four unidentified traders succeeded in getting their application lodged milliseconds ahead of others to get 12,207ML of Goulburn allocation water into the Murray Valley, earning a premium of up to $30 a megalitre or $366,210.

In contrast, ordinary irrigators were forced to pay brokers to get their water through the IVT or use the MyWater portal, which demands they manually fill out online applications and credit card details, by which time trade limit has often been reached.

The Victorian Farmers Federation has repeatedly called on the government to develop a more equitable Goulburn-Murray IVT trading system, as has the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission during its 2021 water trading inquiry.

In 2021 the VFF called on the government to ensure IVT trading rules guaranteed “equitable access rather than one that benefits brokers and their favoured clients”.

VFF water council chair Andrew Leahy questioned why Argyle had now been given access to the broker portal.

“If I don’t have access to the portal, why should they (Argyle),” Mr Leahy said.

Argyle chief investment officer Kim Morison said the firm traded water up to 10 times a day and “the most efficient way of doing this is electronic access” through the portal.

“We’re not brokers,” Mr Morison said. “We’re selling out of our portfolio or moving water where it’s needed most.”

Argyle chief investment officer Kim Morison says the firm needs access to the Victorian broker portal as it trades water up to 10 times a day.

Victorian Water Minister Harriet Shing’s office confirmed Argyle Capital Partners had demonstrated compliance with the requirements to use the broker portal, which included having professional indemnity insurance.

As for the trade inequity Ms Shing said “we are determined to ensure that water markets share resources fairly and efficiently – it’s why the Allan Labor government is working in partnership with other states and the Murray-Darling Basin Authority to improve equity of access to IVT opportunities for all market participants.

“Previous solutions investigated have resulted in increased transaction times and uncertainty in applications.”