Toll’s WA infrastructure spend tops $140 million

Renowned transport and logistics specialist, Toll Group, has spent more than $140 million on major property investments and upgrades in Western Australia to support Toll’s increased focus on servicing the resource and energy secto, as well as growing demand for more traditional services.

Current key investments include a $54m express road freight terminal at Hazelmere that opened this year; a $47m interstate rail freight forwarding terminal in Kewdale due to open in early 2013; a $30m from-scratch transport hub for Toll Group businesses in Gap Ridge, Karratha due to open mid-2013; and a $12m freight terminal upgrade for in Kununurra that opened this year.

These strategic developments are in addition to the more than 50 sites Toll already operates in Western Australia.

Toll Group Business Development Manager Western Australia, Jason Holme,s said although the combined expenditure for the four sites is more than $140 million, the real contribution to the economy comes in the form of local job creation, and their flow-on economic effect.

“The fully integrated transport hub we’re building in Karratha will create around 40 jobs based in Karratha, not fly-in fly-out,” he said. “But that’s just the beginning. We plan to increase that number further as we grow our operations and other Toll businesses start operating out of the site later next year.”

Holmes also said a continued focus on strategic development opportunities will see more major developments announced later in the year to help Toll increase its share of the resource and energy sector and help Toll’s integrated organic growth program across its businesses.

“We’ll continue to take a long term strategic approach to property demand, and how best it will service our diverse and ever-increasing customer base in Western Australia,” he explained.

Toll has also recently opened a Group-wide business development office in Perth to help drive its One Toll organic growth initiative and increasing property development demand, which should lead to more large-scale projects being announced this year.

Holmes said there were some inherent advantages in establishing a centralised office that coordinates the immense resources of Toll’s 17 Western Australia-based businesses. “The new, centralised office helps us service our customers and enables us to design and implement customised logistics solutions for the resources and energy sectors.”