Port of Melbourne Tour

On Wednesday 13th May, I went alongside the Year 10 Money and Markets class and the Year 12 Economics class to the heart of Melbourne, where we visited the Port of Melbourne. 

The Port of Melbourne is Australia’s largest capital city container and general cargo port, handling more than one-third of the nation’s container trade. They operate as a landlord port and are responsible for planning, operating and maintaining port land and shipping channels, making sure the port has the capacity and capability needed to handle cargo, and that facilities and infrastructure are developed and maintained.

We arrived there, and were all immediately in awe, with the massive dinosaur-looking cranes, and the ocean water right in front of us. It was a truly beautiful place to sit down and have lunch. 

Later, we entered a classroom, where a staff member from the port conducted a lesson about the history, importance, and statistics of the port. We learned about the 30,000 jobs the port supports, from lawyers to crane operators to drivers. 

The port operates 24/7, with 8,900 containers handled per day. After the very intriguing lesson, we hopped back on the bus for a tour, going around the inside of the port, witnessing the workers in the port environment, and operating it.

It is well known that trade is extremely important to Australia, but before experiencing the port, I never really realised the true importance of it and how much work is put into making sure the nation is stable and growing. 

Without trade, Australia would not receive much income, and the government would not be able to put as much money into developing the country. Luckily, the country has various natural resources such as coal, iron, lithium, plus much more that we can and do export to other countries. 

Thank you Port of Melbourne for this great experience, it was truly memorable.

Mariana Goncalves 

Year 10

Photographer: 

Lucas Hijlkema 

Year 10