Prisoners will begin moving in to a new unit at Port Phillip Prison this week.
The unit, opened by Corrections Minister Edward O’Donohue, adds 118 beds to the state’s largest maximum- security prison.
Mr O’Donohue said the expansion boosted the Truganina prison’s capacity to 1107 prisoners and created 60 jobs.
He said the unit was one of the largest expansions of the prison system in the state’s history.
“As Victoria’s largest maximum- security prison, Port Phillip plays a critical role in managing some of our most difficult, hard-to-manage offenders,” Mr O’Donohue said.
“The new infrastructure will support the crucial community safety and parole reforms introduced by the Napthine government.”
Construction on the $30 million unit began in late 2012.
The expansion has delivered new facilities to benefit the large prison population, including new processing and administration areas and holding cells for prisoner movements.
A new ‘central movement’ building will increase security for transition of prisoners internally, while two new industry and education buildings will provide training and education for the larger prisoner population.
The prison, opened in 1997, manages more than 25,000 prisoner movements a year and has more than 200 visitors every day.
