Regulatory updates

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Tariff Compliance Statement & Five year review

Pricing Order Engagement Protocol (jump to section)

Tariff Rebalancing Proposal (jump to section)

Pricing Order Amendment (jump to section)

Tariff Compliance Statement & Five year review

Under the Pricing Order, Port of Melbourne is required to submit a Tariff Compliance Statement to the Essential Services Commission (ESC) by no later than 31 May each year. The Tariff Compliance Statement must explain how Prescribed Service Tariffs for the upcoming financial year comply with the Pricing Order.

Five year review

The ESC is responsible for monitoring and reporting on Port of Melbourne’s compliance with the Pricing Order. The ESC must conduct a public review of Port of Melbourne’s compliance with the Pricing Order every five years and report its findings to the ESC Minister.

The Essential Services Commission (ESC) has completed its inaugural 5-year review of PoM’s compliance with the Pricing Order, and its report was released in late January 2022.

Port of Melbourne Undertaking

Port of Melbourne has prepared an Undertaking addressing the findings of the review, which can be found in this summary document. The response demonstrates actions we have taken to remedy the findings of the ESC and ensure compliance going forward. The Undertaking has been accepted by the Assistant Treasurer the Hon Danny Pearson MP, who is the Minister for the ESC, and is legally binding until 30 June 2027, in line with the ESC’s next review.

In accepting the undertaking, the ESC Minister has acknowledged that he is satisfied that the terms of the undertaking offered by PoM are appropriate to adequately address the non-compliance with the Pricing Order.  PoM looks forward to continuing to operate and develop the port in the interests of the Victorian economy and Victorian consumers.

For further information on the Port of Melbourne’s response to the five year review:

  • Download the Port of Melbourne’s media statement
  • Download Port of Melbourne Response to ESC Review Findings – Public Summary

More information about the ESC’s roles under the regulatory framework can be found on their website.

Pricing Order Engagement Protocol

In May 2022, Port of Melbourne (PoM) committed to an Undertaking  to the Assistant Treasurer, the Hon Danny Pearson MP, Essential Services Commission (ESC) Minister. This Undertaking was in response the ESC’s review of PoM’s compliance with its Pricing Order.

As part the Undertaking, PoM released the draft Pricing Order Engagement Protocol (POEP) on 2 September 2022 for consultation. In response to this consultation, PoM received two submissions and, having considered the feedback has made adjustments to incorporate feedback and finalised the POEP. PoM has provided responses to the stakeholders that made submissions outlining how PoM has had regard to their feedback and how their feedback has been addressed in the final POEP.

PoM continues to grow and enhance its stakeholder engagement capability, as we operate and develop the port in the interests of the Victorian economy and consumers. We are updating our internal business systems and processes to support the implementation of the POEP and support our stakeholder engagement practice to reference the IAP2 Quality Assurance Standard.  This will include training staff to support its implementation.

To download the POEP click here.

Tariff Rebalancing Proposal

12 February 2021 Update

On 23 December 2020, Port of Melbourne submitted a tariff rebalancing proposal to the Essential Services Commission.

Following discussions with the Essential Services Commission and in order to provide further opportunities for Port Users and other stakeholders to provide their views, PoM has decided to temporarily withdraw the Rebalancing Application and defer the proposed tariff adjustment from 1 July 2021 to a later date.

Information on the Essential Services Commission’s process can be found on its website.

 If you would like more information, please email rts@portofmelbourne.com

Pricing Order Amendment

The Port Rail Transformation Project is being funded by an amendment to the Pricing Order effective from 1 June 2020 that includes an increase in the tariff on full import containers of $9.75 per TEU. More information can be found below: