ROYAL Caribbean Cruises has
praised the IPART draft report on
maximum fees and charges for
cruise ships in Sydney Harbour
released on Tue as being “both
thorough and balanced”.
The company said it is “pleased”
by the proposal for a two-tiered
charging system for the two
terminals, having “advocated for
port pricing that reflects the cost
of service provision by the Port
Authority”.
Carnival Australia took a more
conservative approach, saying
it is studying the report and the
“proposal for what appears to
be a complex two-tiered pricing
mechanism for Sydney’s existing
cruise terminals”.
Both companies noted that
Sydney is already one of the most
expensive ports in the world in
terms of port charges and RCL
went on to say it is reassured “by
IPART’s rejection of the proposal
to place a ‘highest and best use’
land valuation on the terminals
which the Tribunal said would
have led to a doubling of the
existing charges”.
The Tribunal’s “strong
commentary on the need for
appropriate port facilities in
Sydney Harbour to address cruise
industry growth”, was highlighted
by Carnival, who backed shared
use of Garden Island by cruise
ships as an interim measure.
“Carnival Australia shares
the concern that no provision
appears to have been made for
a new cruise terminal east of the
Harbour Bridge and that a new
facility might be needed as early
as 2018 based on current cruise
industry growth,” the Carnival
Australia statement said.
RCL advised it would be
responding to the report “in due
course”.
