Port Expansion

Media From Treasure - Curtis Pitt,

Mourilyan Harbour the key to unlocking more exports in the Far North​

Mourilyan Harbour has entered a new era of mineral export capacity following the first shipment of iron ore from Mourilyan to the Port of Qingdao in southern China announced Treasurer Curtis Pitt.

“This is a great regional success story with the shipment – comprising 25,000 tonne of high-grade magnetite – produced at the Mt Ruby mine near Ravenshoe on the Atherton Tablelands and its owner/operator Tablelands Mining Group (TMG),” Mr Pitt said.

“The shipment was the culmination of more than three years of planning and development of the mine, securing the required environmental and supply chain approvals and development of port facilities.

“This initial shipment is a significant milestone for the Harbour, having proven the export capability of both TMG and Mourilyan Harbour and demonstrating the significant value-add to the region, including direct employment.

“A new port stockpile facility was purpose built by Ports North for the export project, designed for up to 50,000 tonne of mineral product, it is capable of servicing monthly shipments of up to 40,000 tonne.

“This state-of-the-art facility has particular emphasis on operational efficiency and environmental management under state government regulations including a subsurface drainage system for water treatment and filtration as well as dust and sediment monitoring systems”

Treasurer Pitt said that over the past 5 years Ports North has developed the Mourilyan Harbour into a multi-user export port forf timber, livestock, raw sugar and molasses.

“This natural deep water port is a perfect export hub for attracting mid-sized bulk exports. It is our quiet achiever, with huge potential,” said Mr Pitt.

“This export opportunity has been realised through of a lot of hard work and cooperation between our corporation, TMG, state government agencies and local contractors.”

Ports North chair Russell Beer said Mourilyan Harbour was shaping-up to be an export jewel in the Far North’s shipping crown, having proven itself an ideal location for specialised bulk shipments.

“Ports North is pleased to have been able to facilitate the magnetite project and looks forward to building on the success by attracting other concentrated bulk export opportunities to the port,” Mr Beer said.

“Ports North has already identified two more sites at the port for future stockpile areasadjacent to the new stockpile facility.
   
“There is ample capacity to expand in Mourilyan to make it a hub for mid-sized, bulk exports into the future.”

Mourilyan Harbour is 100km south of Cairns, and 20km south of the city of Innisfail - which itself has a large number of mineral deposits just to the west.

Treasurer Pitt said that why the Palaszczuk Government had kept state-owned assets in Queensalnd ownerships and continued to look ahead for new opportunities.

“This is why we put a stop to the LNP’s fire sale of assets, to ensure we could continue to invest in the economic development of regions like the Far North,” Mr Pitt said.

“The potential for other companies and mining projects to use this Harbour will only continue to expand.”