Port of Gladstone
{{#badges: CoalSwarm|Navbar-Australiacoal}}The Port of Gladstone is Queensland's largest multi-commodity port and the fifth largest multi-commodity port in Australia. It forms an integral part of the City of Gladstone, Queensland in Central Queensland and is located about 525 km north of Brisbane. It is owned and managed by the Gladstone Ports Corporation, which is a statutory corporate body of the Government of Queensland.
Major exports include coal, alumina, aluminium, cement products and liquid ammonia. Coal makes up 70% of the total exports from the port, with the majority being in the form of coking coal exported to Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, India, Italy and France for high quality steel manufacturing. Major imports include bauxite and petroleum products as well as general cargo in containers.[1]
The Gladstone port complex includes two terminals dedicated to coal exports: the RG Tanna Coal Terminal, which is the world's fourth largest coal exporting terminal, and the newly constructed Wiggins Island Coal Terminal (scheduled to open in 2015). A third terminal - the Barney Point Coal Terminal - has been exporting coal since 1998 but is scheduled to be decommissioned and converted into a general cargo terminal in 2015, in conjunction with the opening of the Wiggins Island terminal.[2].
Background
In 2008, the Queensland Government announced A$20.9 million worth of funding for the port which included A$4.3 million for dust suppression measures.[3] Expansion plans in the port include the development of LNG exports, expansion of existing coal terminals and alumina refinery as well as a possible nickel refinery.
The port consists of a number of wharves and terminal facilities. Auckland Point was where coal exporting began in 1925 and later live horse exports occurred in the mid 1930s. The first berth at Fisherman’s Landing was completed in 1980. A second berth was built in the 1990s and this area is earmarked for future expansion. Boyne Wharf is used by the Boyne Island aluminium smelter and was opened in August 1982. Two berths at South Trees have been used by Queensland Alumina Limited. RG Tanna Coal Terminal was opened in 1997 and is used to export coking coal to Japanese steel mills. Barney Point was used to export coal from Moura, Queensland. The facilities here were incorporated into the Port of Gladstone in November 1998.[4] The new Wiggins Island Coal Terminal is scheduled to open for business in 2015, which will lead to conversion of the Barney Point terminal into a general cargo facility.[2].
In October 2014, Queensland state premier Campbell Newman announced that his government would seek to privatize the Port of Gladstone by selling a 99-year lease on the port to a private investor. The move is intended to help reduce the state government's A$80 billion debt.[5]
Articles and Resources
Sources
- ↑ "Trade Statistics", Gladstone Ports Corporation website, accessed January 2015.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Gladstone Ports Corporation 50-Year Strategic Plan", Gladstone Ports Corporation, July 2012, pp 5-9.
- ↑ "Government pledges millions to combat coal dust in our port", APN News & Media (4 June 2008). Retrieved on 5 December 2010.
- ↑ "History of GPC", Gladstone Ports Corporation website, accessed January 2015.
- ↑ "Queensland opts for port leasing option", Port Strategy, October 22, 2014.
Related SourceWatch articles
- Australia and coal
- Australian Coal Association
- Queensland and coal
- Wiggins Island Coal Terminal
- Barney Point Coal Terminal
- Coal terminals
Wikipedia also has an article on Port of Gladstone. This article may use content from the Wikipedia article under the terms of the GFDL.
