Tasmanian Wheat Freight Scheme

On this page you will find information about:

• Administration
• Purpose of the Scheme
• The Rebate
• Further Information
• History

1. Administration

The scheme is administered in accordance with Ministerial Directions approved by the Minister in January 2006.

Click here for the TWFS Ministerial Directions - January 2006 [PDF: 34 KB]

All claims for assistance for shipments under the scheme are assessed by Centrelink's Hobart office on behalf of the Department.

In the 2010-11 Budget, the Australian Government announced that up to $1.05 million would be made available under the scheme.

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2. Purpose of the Scheme

The scheme provides a rebate to eligible shippers of bulk wheat on Bass Strait.

The scheme assists in alleviating the cost of shipping eligible bulk wheat to Tasmania so that businesses in Tasmania, relying on bulk wheat shipments, are not unduly disadvantaged.

The scheme operates by making payments of assistance to eligible shippers who are responsible for paying the sea freight costs of eligible bulk wheat.

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3. The Rebate

Subject to an annual appropriation by the Federal Parliament, up to $1.05 million is available in a financial year for distribution under the scheme.

A shipper may be eligible for a subsidy, at the rate of up to $20.65 per tonne, in respect of the freight costs of a shipment of bulk wheat by sea from the mainland to Tasmania. In each case the amount paid to the eligible shipper may not exceed that eligible shipper's freight costs.

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4. Further information

Requests for information on applying for TWFS, the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme or the Bass Strait Passenger Equalisation Scheme and other administrative matters should be directed to:

Tasmanian Transport Programs, Centrelink

GPO Box 1269,
HOBART TAS 7001,
FreeCALL: 1800 993 347,
Fax: (03) 6222 2149,
Email: tfes.support@centrelink.gov.au.

More information is found at Centrelink's TWFS webpage:
www.centrelink.gov.au/internet/internet.nsf/businesses/twfs.htm
or go to Tasmanian Wheat Freight Scheme from the A to Z listing on Centrelink's homepage www.centrelink.gov.au

Centrelink is the Australian Government's primary service delivery agency and undertakes the delivery of the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme, the TWFS and the Bass Strait Passenger Vehicle Equalisation Scheme on behalf of the Department.

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5. History

In 1959, a marketing arrangement was established to ensure that the administered price for wheat was the same for mainland Australian and Tasmanian users. The Tasmanian Wheat Freight Levy was financed by a levy on wheat sales, which was used to cover the freight costs to Tasmania.

In 1989, coinciding with the deregulation of the Australian domestic wheat market, the levy was replaced by the Tasmanian Wheat Freight Subsidy Scheme, administered at the time by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

Assistance for bulk wheat was briefly halted following a Budget 2004-05 decision, when containerised wheat was included under the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme. Shortly after, the Australian Government made the decision to reinstate a scheme for bulk shipments of wheat. The new scheme, the Tasmanian Wheat Freight Scheme (TWFS) came into effect from 1 July 2004.

The Government also transferred responsibility for administration of the new TWFS from the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry to the then Minister for Transport and Regional Services, (now the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government), to ensure that all transport related assistance is administered from within one portfolio. Rebates for containerised shipments of wheat are paid through the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme, and for bulk wheat through TWFS.

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