The Federal Government says its national ports strategy will help boost productivity and deal with some of the bottlenecks that are restricting exports.
The strategy, due to be released today, will propose nationally consistent environmental assessments for port operators as well as a stronger focus on measuring performance.
It will require port operators to publish 15-30-year master plans that will consider issues such as freight corridors to and from ports.
The strategy will be put to state and territory governments at next month's Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting between the Prime Minister and state premiers.
Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese says there has never been a national coordinating strategy to deal with ports.
He says Australia is losing billions of dollars in export revenue because of bottlenecks at ports and demand for the infrastructure is expected to triple over the next two decades.
"We want to make sure that we have those proper planning mechanisms in place," he said.
"What that will do is create certainty which will facilitate private-sector investment in our port development which is just so important in coming years."
The Government also wants new restrictions on property development near ports to protect future transport access.
Mr Albanese says the plan is not a federal takeover of the nation's ports and he wants to work with the states to finalise the strategy.
The Opposition says any long-term plan to fix problems at the nation's ports needs to deal with industrial relations issues.
Opposition infrastructure spokesman Warren Truss says he doubts the Government's commitment to the issue.
"Under Labor, the momentum for port reform has dissipated and plans will be worth nothing unless the Government is also prepared to attack the industrial relations issues which make Australian ports uncompetitive," he said.
Paddy Crumlin, the Maritime Union of Australia's National Secretary, says the strategy is long overdue and he is calling on the states to come to the table.
"This has been a sought-after policy direction that ties together and creates an atmosphere for long-term investment," he said.
"Certainly there's a lot of things that have to be worked through through COAG and the relationship between the states and the Federal Government, but at the end of the day it shows real leadership and we're welcoming it."
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