This Antarctic season will see hundreds of international and Australian expeditioners transit through Hobart on their way to Antarctica, creating great commercial opportunities for Tasmanian businesses and suppliers.
Foreign nations staging missions from Tasmania this season include Italy, France, Korea, New Zealand and Japan, with vessels in port and expeditioners transiting through Hobart to either join ocean expeditions here or to fly direct from Hobart to Antarctica.
We also look forward to welcoming the new Chinese icebreaker, Xue Long 2, which is expected to arrive on 5 November followed by the Xue Long following on 7 November. This will represent the first of five scheduled visits by the Chinese Antarctic program this summer.
The visit of the two Xue Longs, as well as Antarctic vessels from around the world, demonstrates our Tasmanian Antarctic Gateway strategy is delivering results.
Port calls inject around $1 million per vessel into our economy and our important Antarctic sector which employs more than 850 Tasmanians.
And as part of the Hobart City Deal, the Morrison Federal Liberal Government announced new capital funding of $450 million for the modernisation of its Antarctic stations and infrastructure over the next ten years.
Through our partnership with the Federal Liberal Government and our Antarctic Gateway Strategy we are further reinforcing Tasmania’s key role as the science and logistics headquarters for the Australian Antarctic program.