NSW Labor will leave intact legislation allowing Newcastle's port operators to develop a large-scale container terminal if it wins government next month.
Newcastle MP Tim Crakanthorp said at a Port of Newcastle media event on Monday that Labor supported the company's plans for a container terminal.
He stopped short of confirming a Labor government would leave the legislation untouched, but shadow treasurer Daniel Mookhey said later that the Opposition had no plans to pick apart or weaken the new laws passed by Parliament in November.
"We would," Mr Mookhey said when asked if Labor would leave the laws intact.
The legislation, introduced by Lake Macquarie MP Greg Piper and amended by the Coalition, allows Port of Newcastle to apply to remove penalties which have constrained it from developing a container terminal to compete against Port Botany.
An independent reviewer will assess how much compensation the port must pay the government for removing the restrictions.
Labor voted for the legislation in November, but only after tabling amendments which would have forced the treasurer to consider whether it was in the public interest to remove the penalties.
The amendments also would have required the treasurer to take into account whether the state would have to compensate NSW Ports, which operates Port Botany and Port Kembla.
The Newcastle Herald reported last week that the government intended to appoint the independent reviewer before entering caretaker mode early next month.
Port of Newcastle chief executive Craig Carmody said he was "pleased that all sides of politics recognise and support this and will allow the ... act's process to be undertaken without interference, regardless of who is in government after March 25".
The port updated journalists on Monday about progress on its new empty container storage park next to Mayfield No.4 berth.
Mr Carmody said 60 per cent of containers shipped out of NSW were empty.
"Empty container parks aid in managing the imbalance between imports and exports," he said.
The port's senior manager of business development, Kate McArthur, said the storage park would make the port more attractive to shipping lines and let exporters "capitalise on good prices".
The port is spending $60 million on the freight wharf, including two new mobile cranes delivered last year, the container storage park and lengthening the berth to accommodate larger ships.
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