Port Kembla is facing competition to be the possible new home of the navy on the east coast – even Norfolk Island has thrown its hat into the ring.
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As part of a defence white paper, Illawarra-based senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells put forward a proposal for Fleet Base East at Garden Island to be relocated in full or in part to Port Kembla.
But among the 269 proposals, there are several from other regions keen to see the navy stationed there.
Perhaps the most direct competition comes from Newcastle.
A submission put together by a firm called McLean Management Consultants recommends a ‘‘staged relocation of Garden Island depot to Newcastle’’.
‘‘[Garden Island’s] operating environment and stakeholders have substantially changed and a staged transition to another appropriate site must be identified and proposed for Defence White Paper 2015,’’ the submission read.
It suggests the ship repair facilities be relocated to a site in Newcastle Harbour formerly used by BHP and Onesteel.
Another main contender is the Port of Brisbane, put forward in a submission by the Queensland government.
Brisbane was suggested by Kevin Rudd during the 2013 election campaign.
The Queensland submission makes note that a master plan is being prepared for the future of the port and ‘‘early engagement by Defence is recommended to investigate the possibilities, and utility of, Royal Australian Navy units becoming home-based in Queensland’’.
The submission claims a number of attributes, including proximity to the US naval base in Guam and the fact it is one of Australia’s few ‘‘nuclear ports’’.
Business Bundaberg has also put forward its port for use as a naval base.
‘‘It is requested that, in undertaking any future naval basing and disposition planning, due consideration be given to the opportunity to establish new naval facilities at the Port of Bundaberg,’’ the submission stated.
A third Queensland port – Townsville – is also looking to attract some of the navy’s ships.
The port already handles navy ships picking up soldiers or dropping them off for rest and recuperation. It is also looking to be considered as a base for landing helicopter docks – large ships that deploy a number of helicopters.
The most ambitious submission comes from Norfolk Island as a potential ‘‘link in the defence chain’’.
One recommendation of the submission from the island’s Finance Minister recommended ‘‘that the Australian Defence Force consider improvements to the Norfolk Island jetties in any review of Defence facilities for foreseeable demands’’.