Newcastle Coal Port
From Envirowiki
The Newcastle Coal Port is the world's biggest coal export facility (Newcastle, New South Wales), and is the ocean end of the Hunter Valley Coal Chain, from which coal is shipped to Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and various other countries in Asia, South America and Europe. It currently exports about 80 million tonnes of black coal per year, although the capacity of the port itself is 89 million tonnes per year. At present the entire export system, from mines in the Upper Hunter Valley and the Gunnedah Basin to the hunter coal rail network and the coal export terminals (CETs) at the port itself, is undergoing a massive overhaul and expansion to improve capacity.
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[edit] 1 Current Capacity
Currently there are two main terminals, both operated by Port Waratah Coal Services (PWCS), one is on Carrington, and one is on Kooragang Island.
[edit] 1.1 Carrington Loader
The Carrington loader opened for business in 1976 at 16 million tonnes per year (tpa). it now exports 25 million tonnes per year. According to the PWCS website, the Carrington Loader currently has:
- 11.5 thousand tonnes per hour (TPH) recieval, although 2,500 of this is by road, and rarely used (9,000 tph)
- 1 million tonnes storage capacity (600k tonnes working capacity), with 10k tonnes stacking capacity
- 10k tph reclaiming capacity, but only 5k tph loading capacity, at two berths. the largest vessel they can deal with is 180,000 tonnes dead weight, and 190 meters long.
[edit] 1.2 Kooragang Loader
The Kooragang terminal opened in 1984 by BHP. PWCS bought it in 1990. PWCS notes that the word "kooragang" is an Aboriginal word for "place where birds gather". It currently takes up 160 hectares and exports up to 64 million tpa. PWCS say that the loader's current capacity is:
- 19.8ktph rail link receival
- 3 million tonnes storage (2.4 million working capacity). 24ktph stacking capacity.
- 24 ktph reclaiming and 31.5ktph ship loading capacity
- 3 berths, up to 232 deadweight tonnes and 300 meters long.
[edit] 2 Export Expansion
PWCS have recently gained approval for a fourth pile at the Kooragang loader site (PWCS expansion on Risingtide.org.au). NCIG are currently in the approval stages of their CET, also on Kooragang.
[edit] 2.1 PWCS Kooragang Loader expansion
The PWCS expansion will not increase the number of ships berthed at once, but it will increase the loading speed, by adding another stockpile and stacking/reclaiming system. It currently has approval to increase the capacity of the CET from 64 million tpa to 77 mtpa (roughly a 17% increase). It is seeking approval to increase the CET's capacity to 120 mpta (Umwelt). This would be an 87% increase.
The Environmental Assesment can be found on the Umwelt website here. opposition to the loader's expansion and its impact on furthering global climate change can currently be lodged here: (from PWCS website)
Public submissions should be lodged with Department of Planning GPO Box 39 SYDNEY NSW 2001
[edit] 2.2 the New NCIG Kooragang terminal
The new NCIG CET is proposed to be sited directly west-south-west of the existing PWCS loader. According to the NCIG website, it will have an approximate total capacity of 60 mtpa ±10%, with the first stage having a capacity of 30 mtpa. NCIG are hoping to commence construction some time in 2007, and complete construction sometime in 2009.
[edit] 2.3 Total
The total of the port's capacity will be increased by between 110 and 122 million tonnes, from a 2006 capacity of 89 million tonnes, to a maximum capacity of 211 million tonnes by 2009, a 137.1% increase. Assuming the rest of the Hunter Valley Coal Chain is upgraded to take economic advantage of this capacity (as is already happening), exports could increase from 80mtpa to 211mpta, an astounding 263.8% of current exports.
[edit] 3 Environmental Problems
[edit] 3.1 Export Emissions Figures
In 2002, NSW greenhouse emissions from all sources totalled 151.7 million tonnes (AGO). The proposed new Coal Export Terminal at Kooragang Island would export up to 66 million tonnes of coal per year (NCIG). When combusted, that equates to about 160 million tonneso of carbon dioxide equivalent (since one tonne of NSW black coal produces about 2.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (AGO).Therefore, contruction of the proposed NCIG CET would be the greenhouse equivalent of more than doubling NSW greenhouse gas pollution from all sources.
[edit] 3.2 Toxics
- Main Article: Newcastle Coal Port/Toxics
The Port expansions, especially the New NCIG CET, will require vast amounts of dredging of the harbour. The harbour, which was up until very recently a heavily industrialised area, is highly contaminated with heavy metals, as well as numerous other dangerous chemicals.
[edit] 3.3 Biodiversity loss
The some of the CET constructions and expansions will take place on the Kooragang wetlands, which is habitat to numerous species of animals, including the endangered Green and Golden Bell Frog, and a number of threatened wetland bird species.
[edit] 4 See Also
- Hunter Valley Coal Chain
- Hunter Valley mines
- Gunnedah Basin Coal Fields
- Sandgate Rail upgrade
- Hunter Coal Rail Link
