Australia's largest grain exporter has announced a $4 billion commitment in its network infrastructure and assets, to be invested over the next 10 years.
Australia's largest grain exporter has announced a $4 billion commitment in its network infrastructure and assets, to be invested over the next 10 years.
Integrated grain storage and marketing cooperative CBH Group is owned and controlled by more than 3,600 Western Australian grain growing businesses.
According to the group, the $4 billion investment equates to between $350 million and $450 million a year to expand and improve current receival, storage and outloading infrastructure, in a bid to reach a monthly export capacity of 3 million tonnes by 2033.
Investment projects for 2023 include site expansions, storage refurbishments, temporary storage builds, accommodation, throughput enhancements, receival equipment upgrades and rapid rail outloading facilities.
CBH Group projects to be completed in FY22 include Dowerin throughput enhancement project, Kwinana Grain Terminal silo refurbishment, and Newdegate circular storage refurbishment.
Construction for the $25 million Broomehill rapid rail outloading facilities and rail sliding is expected to start in 2023.
CBH Group chief operations officer Mick Daw said last year’s crop reinforced the need for CBH to continue with increased levels of investment in the network.
He said CBH had invested more than $1.2 billion in the co-operative.
“As the crop size continues to grow, we must invest more to improve our ability to receive the harvest efficiently, sustain current assets, and build infrastructure to increase the tonnes to customer capability of the network,” Mr Daw said.
“Increasing the capacity of our network is critical to maximising the value of growers’ grain in international markets, and sustainably creating value for WA growers, both current and future.”
Chief project delivery officer Sam Gliddon said temporary storage played a significant role in bringing last year’s record crop.
“If we look at how much temporary storage has been added to and planned for the network over the past two years, CBH will have increased its entire network storage capacity by over 20 per cent in just 12 months,” he said.
“This is a phenomenal effort, and much needed across all zones. Our strategy includes converting many of these temporary storages to permanent specifications in the future.”
According to the group, CBH has invested an average of $240 million a year, the most being $285.3 million in the 2018-19 financial year.
