Council Secures Waste Collection Deal With Cleanaway

Earlier this year, we began a tendering process to establish new contract arrangements for kerbside waste collections in our City. This was necessary because the original contract with Citywide Waste, which began in July 2023, was shortened due to significant collection issues.

The tender was therefore a chance for us to establish a fresh, mutually beneficial deal with our then provider, Citywide Waste - or a new waste contractor. During the tender process, Cleanaway acquired Citywide Waste (1 July 2025) - but there was no change to our waste services and no impact to residents.

Following the collection issues of 2023, we organised an independent investigation into what happened, as well as how the waste contract was established. Since then, we have thoroughly reviewed and improved our procurement policies to ensure financial sustainability, accountability and transparency of Council.

Now, following a rigorous and independently led tender, City of Port Phillip will extend its kerbside waste collection contract with Cleanaway. The new four-year agreement, commencing in October 2026, is valued at $47.9 million (ex GST) and includes an option to extend for a further three years.

This decision ensures continuity for one of Council's most critical services, which covers over 51,000 homes and hundreds of public and community sites. The new arrangement delivers a $3.6 million saving compared with Cleanaway's first tender price, offering strong value for residents in an environment of rising service delivery costs.

Council explored alternative delivery models, including purchasing Cleanaway's fleet and running the service in-house. However, extending the current contract was found to be the most cost-effective and sustainable option.

Missed bin reports have dropped sharply since the collection issues of 2023, with only nine bins reported as missing in August 2025 per 10,000 properties. Council is confident this positive trend will continue under the new agreement.

The contract includes several enhancements to further boost service quality and efficiency:

• a $600,000 investment in service optimisation, such as route adjustments, to reduce costs and support Council's waste transformation goals
• three upgraded, fit-for-purpose vehicles added to the fleet
• improved recycling truck capacity and better alignment of communal FOGO days with residential pickups.

Port Phillip's density and housing mix creates unique challenges for waste collection, particularly in busy urban areas and for apartment complexes requiring tailored access. Cleanaway has demonstrated its ability to meet these demands.

This new contract positions Council to continue delivering high-quality waste services well into the future.

Frequently Asked Questions

• How many organisations applied to the Kerbside Services tender?

  Two companies tendered: Cleanaway and Citywide's waste business. Both were evaluated before Cleanaway acquired Citywide's waste business in July 2025.

  Following this acquisition, Citywide's offer was effectively withdrawn as Cleanaway said they would not enter into a contract based on the Citywide tender.

• Why didn't more organisations apply to the tender?

  Waste management is an industry with a relatively small number of providers. Only three external organisations have serviced Port Phillip's kerbside waste collection over the three decades, and two of them applied to the tender.

• Was the kerbside waste contract tender process being conducted assuming a change to fortnightly garbage for houses and townhouses?

  The waste tender covered garbage collection services as they currently operate. Cleanaway will continue providing these services, although there may be small changes to collection routes and bin pickup days to improve efficiency.

  As part of this extension, we have explored various options with Cleanaway, including a change in collection frequency, the rollout of a glass service, increased use of the FOGO service, changes to the communal collection hubs, and other initiatives.

  If Council decides to move to fortnightly garbage collection, there will be a process in place to update the agreement with Cleanaway accordingly.

• Council is currently consulting on the draft waste and recycling strategy until October 19, but a waste contractor has just been awarded a contract extension - how do these things fit together?

  While these two topics are related, they are not dependent on each other. The kerbside collection contract extension has been designed to be flexible and accommodate whatever outcomes emerge from the strategy consultation.

  If the consultation results in no changes to Council services, the collection contract remains appropriate. However, if the strategy leads to the rollout of new services or changes to existing services, the contract can be adjusted accordingly.