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October 26, 2026
Monday 26 October 2026
Jade Gailberger
Herald Sun
The historic Williamstown shipyard would be transformed into a waterfront promenade with residential and retail spaces under an ambitious vision from its new buyer.
But experts have slammed the sale of the prime-positioned industrial site as a "strategic failure" of governments, amid concerns that Australia will lose significant naval shipbuilding capacity
BAE Systems Australia has confirmed the sale of the Williamstown site is "under way", with a small group of Australian investors expected to make the purchase.
The precinct became home to shipbuilding in the early 1900s. But operations at the site concluded in 2016, a decade after the completion of the Anzac-class frigates.
Property funds manager and development consultant EMKC3 is assisting with the approval processes, with a hope to reinvigorate the site - reportedly worth $200m in 2024 - over the next few years.
Senior development manager Felicity Richardson said: "A bunch of Australian investors have joined together to turn a currently unused former indutrial waterfront site into a productive asset for the local community and economy.
"Our vision includes a waterfront promenade, green space, residential opportunities and retail alongside some light industry," Ms Richardson said.
"It will bring investment to Victoria, and the opportunity to create jobs in the advanced manufacturing sector and other new-world industries, as well as assist in addressing the chronic shortage of housing in the state."
State planning laws dictate that shipyard be used for "industrial and marine engineering purposes and ancillary purposes".
EMKC3 is jointly owned by the EMKC Group that is "headquartered in Hong Kong", but it is understood the sale will not go to the Foreign Investment Review Board,
Concerns have been raised about the loss of the strategic site, which went up for sale in 2023, with opposition defence spokesman James Paterson saying the Royal Australian Navy needed significant naval shipbuilding capacity.
"I hope (Defence Minister) Richard Marles is giving careful thought to these questions and alerts his cabinet colleagues to the potential effect on the national interest," Senator Paterson said. "Williamstown Shipyard also has immense heritage value as a centrepiece of Australia's maritime and industrial history."
Strategic Analysis Australia director Michael Shoebridge said the shipyard's location was its primary advantage and letting this "opportunity be turned into apartments" continued the pattern of "strategic failure in decision making by governments, federal and state".
"If you listen to what government ministers say, naval shipbuilding is a vital, urgent activity for Australia. And here we are selling probably one of the best sites in the country for a shipyard to a developer instead of reinvesting and making it a modern capable shipyard," Mr Shoebridge said.