“
Sixty percent of the world’s population lies due north, in the same time zone as WA. This region, including China and South East Asia, has the highest economic growth in the world. As growth shifts to India and Africa as expected, WA and the WTC is ideally positioned to service and support this growth. These countries need the resources and products that WA can and has the opportunity to produce. The WTC is a major economic zone with an international specialisation in the refining of bulk products. Due to the availability of critical raw materials, energy supplies, technical expertise and the other benefits previously mentioned, WA has a suite of strong competitive advantages for secondary processing. Some of these sectors can be expanded, while others developed into a full collection of New Energy industries associated with Lithium Valley. 6.6.3.1. Port Infrastructure Development and Governance of the WTC The development of the new port at Kwinana is important for the development of the New Energy metals industry as it will provide high capacity, modernised port facilities, greatly improving import and export capability. In turn, the expected improvement of the logistics in the WTC allows for greater efficiencies to be captured across the entire supply chain. 54 The port operations can be a way of increasing the value of the real estate, as the new port would generate development of the WTC. That is where the real money and value is, in the development of the land. In addition, the establishment of a SIP within the WTC would make access to a port attractive to new investment but it has to be integrated with land parcels because that is where the value is. The Government continues to own the land on which the port and industrial development occurs and grants leases or long term concessions over parcels including transport, land and port access to maximise vertical integration options and supply chain efficiencies. Ideally, there should be only
one body responsible for the Government interface, especially when a SIP is established with a focus on New Energy Industries. This would speed up approvals while also reducing costs and at the same time it would also be expected to improve compliance with regulations. It is recommended and considered critical that a statutory authority be established for the whole of the WTC or the Industrial Lands Authority mandates a special purpose vehicle under their restructuring specifically to manage the entire WTC. This statutory authority may zone a portion of the WTC for Lithium Valley and mandate a professional dedicated management team (similar to AMC) to develop, manage and market to local and foreign companies. There is a strong incentive for this to occur as quickly as possible due to the speed of international developments in the New Energy metals industry. Services would include providing a plug and play solution covering specifics such as approvals, utilities, visas, industrial relation services, and other opportunities to facilitate companies locating to region. Professional management, appropriately incentivised with a proactive commercial Business Development "Business networks continue to become more complex and organisations more and more integrated. It is not organisations that are competing but international supply chains to meet ever more demanding customers." Christopher 1996
54 Christopher, Martin (2015), "Supply chains compete, not companies", husdal.com, 02 October 2015, http://www.husdal.com/2008/04/22/supply-chains-compete-not-companies/ . (Accessed: 30 May 2018)
Page 71
Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator