Australia's shipping and broader maritime sectors have been long-neglected and require revitalisation to meet the nation's economic and security needs, an independent task force has found.
In 2022, the government committed to rebuilding a 12-vessel-strong strategic fleet that would be privately owned and commercially operated for shipping purposes but could be requisitioned by the government during conflicts, major supply chain disruptions or natural disasters.
It also commissioned a task force to guide its implementation.
The task force's final report, released on Wednesday, found Australia's maritime sector faces a significant shortage of Australian-flagged vessels and crew.
Years of decline and an increasing reliance on foreign-flagged vessels have reduced the current Australian fleet to 15 vessels, which puts the nation in a dangerous position during times of crises, the task force said.
The 12 extra vessels would be a "first step on the path", the task force maintained the Australian maritime sector would need to introduce measures to lay the foundations for long-term investment and revitalise the industry before providing 16 recommendations.
"If we get the broader measures right, we will have a growing strategic fleet that will be self-sustaining and provide much greater certainty for our economic sovereignty and national security," the task force reported.
The government agreed to recommendations to streamline and encourage vessel registration, review legislation to ensure regulations support the fleet, improve collaboration between maritime bodies to better align civilian and defence maritime movements, and review the fleet a year after vessels are selected.
Another 12 suggestions were agreed to "in-principle" including reducing the operational costs of Australian vessels, ensuring crew are being paid appropriately, legislating power to requisition the vessels, and establishing a cadetship program.
Infrastructure Minister Catherine King said the government was committed to a strong and thriving maritime industry.
"The creation of a strategic fleet will build Australia's resilience and protect our national security and economic sovereignty by enabling the movement of cargo in a time of crisis," she said on Wednesday.
The commitment comes after a Defence Strategic Review found governments would need to respond to growing geopolitical tensions in the region.
"This is really an important piece of work," Ms King told reporters.
"We know that we are not going to be replacing the thousands of ships who are bringing goods and services here to Australia but what this really is about is making sure we've got the strategic capacity at times of emergency and also that strategic capacity to train Australians."
