Capacity available at Australian grain ports in 2024-25
Australia's largest bulk grain handlers have millions in tonnes of unallocated loading capacity at their port terminals in the October 2024-September 2025 marketing year.
Bulk handlers GrainCorp, Viterra and CBH record at least 3.7mn t of available capacity across 17 port terminals on Australia's east and west coast in 2024-25. Shipping capacity has been stretched in past years, because of record bumper harvests. This led to the expansion of mobile shiploaders to ease bottlenecks at export terminals.
Viterra — which covers the southern states of South Australia and Victoria — indicates available capacity of almost 2.5mn t in 2024-25, of which 540,000t is at its Port Adelaide outer harbour. Available capacity is lower at GrainCorp and CBH, at 400,000t and 870,000t respectively. Additional capacity is available at GrainCorp's Fisherman Islands, Carrington and Port Kembla and Geelong terminals in New South Wales, although exact quantities are not provided.
Spare capacity at CBH terminals in Western Australia (WA) represents just 4pc of the 19.5mn t in total port shipping capacity for 2024-25 and 2pc of total capacity at the Kwinana facility. The Kwinana port has a maximum outloading capacity of 5000 t/hr and ships more than half of WA's total grain production on average each year, according to company data.
Australia is forecast to export 23mn t of wheat and 5.6mn t of barley in the 2024-25 marketing year, according to the US Department of Agriculture. But wheat exports will have to pick up from current levels to meet this target. Australia exported an average of 1.79mn t/month of wheat in the current marketing year to June, according to the Australia Bureau of Statistics. It will have to export at least 1.92mn t/month in 2024-25 to meet the USDA target.
Further difficulty may arise if shipments to China, Australia's primary wheat export destination, slow in 2024-25. Current demand from China has been notably absent compared with the same time last year, according to market participants.
Australia grain port available capacity in 2024-25 | 000t | |
Grain Handler | Port | Capacity |
GrainCorp | Mackay | 1.95 |
Gladstone | 2.05 | |
Fisherman Islands | Available | |
Carrington | Available | |
Port Kembla | Available | |
Geelong | Available | |
Portland | None | |
Viterra | Pt Adelaide (Outer Harbor) | 5.40 |
Pt Adelaide (Inner Harbour) | 3.09 | |
Pt Giles | 3.00 | |
Pt Lincoln | 3.89 | |
Wallaroo | 3.89 | |
Thevenard | 5.40 | |
CBH | Geraldton | 2.70 |
Kwinana | 1.55 | |
Albany | 1.05 | |
Esperance | 3.40 | |
Total | 37.37 | |
Source: Company Data | ||
Capacity of GrainCorp as at 13 August, Viterra as at 12 August and CBH as at 25 July. Viterra capacity subject to restrictions. |
Related news posts
Bill would require US EIA to share more SAF data
Bill would require US EIA to share more SAF data
New York, 12 August (Argus) — A bipartisan bill would require the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) to report more granular data about sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), which supporters say would add transparency to an opaque market and help scale up production. The agency currently tracks SAF and offers periodic updates on the fuel's use, though not on any regular cadence like it does with conventional petroleum-based fuels and more established biofuels like ethanol, biodiesel, and renewable diesel. But the US Department of Energy and EIA would have to shift course and provide more frequent and technical SAF updates "as soon as practicable" if the bill, introduced late last week by representatives Mike Flood (R-Nebraska) and Troy Carter (D-Louisiana), ends up passing. According to bill text shared with Argus , EIA would have to report on SAF production across the country and in each state, imports, and the "type, origin, and volume of feedstock" used to make SAF. The bill defines SAF as liquid fuel that produces at least 50pc fewer lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions as conventional jet fuel and that is not produced from petroleum or palm oil derivatives, mirroring eligibility requirements set out in the Inflation Reduction Act for a SAF tax credit. The bill specifically requires that EIA's Petroleum Supply Monthly and Weekly Petroleum Status Report include the new SAF data along with "any other relevant report." Potentially applicable publications include EIA's monthly report estimating biofuel production capacity — which currently lumps SAF together with renewable diesel and lesser-used biofuels — and a monthly outlook that includes production, consumption, and import projections for various commodities. Various biofuels associations — including corn groups that are banking on rising SAF production to create new demand for ethanol — voiced their support. Geoff Cooper, president of the Renewable Fuels Association, said that "this legislation would ensure SAF producers and users have the information they need to make informed decisions and smart investments." While relatively little supply is available today, EIA said last month that SAF production capacity could hit nearly 30,000 b/d this year and increase again in 2025 if planned capacity additions are not delayed. Refiners like Phillips 66, Calumet, and Valero have set plans to convert more of their renewable diesel production to SAF over the next year. There are also other production pathways in various stages of development, such as using ethanol as feedstock or converting syngas from agricultural and forest wastes into liquid fuel. The bill, which has five Democratic and two Republican sponsors, is pending before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. EIA declined to comment on any policy proposal. By Cole Martin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Michigan milk-to-ethanol plant breaks ground
Michigan milk-to-ethanol plant breaks ground
Houston, 8 August (Argus) — A Canada-based milk-to-alcohol provider has begun construction on a Michigan plant designed to produced 2.2mn USG/yr of ethanol using milk byproduct sourced from dairy farms. Through a joint venture with the Michigan Milk Producers Association, Ontario-based Dairy Distillery will produce the biofuel using 14,000 metric tonnes/yr of milk permeate at the plant in Constantine, Michigan, which broke ground on 6 August. The $41mn project was announced last year and is expected to begin ethanol production in early 2025. The plant received $2.5mn in funding from the state of Michigan. Dairy Distillery uses milk permeate to produce vodka in Ontario, marketed at Vodkow. The Michigan plant will be its first to produce ethanol for fuel-use. The company's new footprint in the US will allow it to take advantage of various federal tax credits for biofuels producers laid out in the Inflation Reduction Act. By Payne Williams Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EPA probes US biofuel producers' UCO supplies
EPA probes US biofuel producers' UCO supplies
Houston, 7 August (Argus) — The US Environmental Protection Agency is auditing used cooking oil (UCO) supply chains of domestic renewable fuel producers to verify whether the feedstock qualifies under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Under the RFS, EPA requires renewable fuel producers to submit UCO collection points that are used for biofuels production. Among other inspections, EPA is evaluating those UCO collection locations, the agency said on Wednesday. After the EPA announcement, current-year biomass-based diesel D4 RINs traded as high as 60.5¢/RIN, which was 5.75¢/RIN higher than Tuesday's closing. Activity on renewable feedstocks was minimal on Wednesday, making it harder to gauge market reaction. "These inspections and any follow-up investigations are part of EPA's routine evaluation of compliance with RFS under the Clean Air Act and reflect the agency's commitment to a stable RFS program that strengthens the nation's energy independence, advances low-carbon fuels, and supports agricultural communities," EPA spokesperson Tim Carroll said. The agency could not discuss the number of inspections, facility identities, and dates of the inspections, he said. A coalition of US farm groups recently called on the Biden administration to restrict biofuels produced with foreign feedstocks from qualifying for a new tax credit as US imports of UCO continue to increase . The group argued that the imports are displacing US feedstocks. US lawmakers also asked the administration to provide more visibility on the UCO supply chain and requested clarity from EPA on how they are ensuring that UCO imports are not blended with palm oil. By Jamuna Gautam Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US ethanol exports rise to record in 1H
US ethanol exports rise to record in 1H
Houston, 6 August (Argus) — US ethanol exports climbed to a record high in the first half of the year, driven by strong domestic production and foreign demand. US ethanol exports averaged 125,600 b/d in January-June, up by a third from the same period last year and 2.2pc higher than the previous first-half record set in 2018, according to US Department of Agriculture (USDA) data going back to 2012. Exports would set a full-year record if the pace is maintained through the end of 2024. US ethanol producers like Green Plains and ADM have said they are confident that robust exports will extend through the end of the year. Robust domestic production has fed the rise in US exports, with output averaging 1.03mn b/d through June, the third highest rate through the first six months behind 2018 and 2019, according to EIA data dating to 2010. January-June output would also rank third on an annualized basis. Low prices for corn, the main feedstock for US ethanol, have incentivized higher production by boosting margins. Front month CBOT corn futures this year have averaged 439¢/bushel, down by nearly a third from 2023, as prices near pre-2021 levels when they averaged less than $4/bushel for six consecutive years. Participants are expecting a record or near-record US corn yield this year, pressuring the domestic corn market. Canada and the UK consistently combine for nearly half of US ethanol exports, with Asian markets emerging as key destinations for US ethanol. Asian markets combined for a 19pc share of US exports in the first half, compared with a 10pc share in the same period a year earlier. US exports to Asia-Pacific in the first half more than doubled from the same period last year to around 24,000 b/d as countries in the region raise ethanol fuel blend rates. India is steadily increasing its fuel ethanol blends, with a goal of 20pc by 2025 , helping nearly double first-half receipts of US ethanol to 13,100 b/d. Exports to the UK have also nearly doubled to 16,300 b/d, as the country can take advantage of favorable trade economics into the rest of Europe in addition to meeting demand from its own fuel blending mandates. US ethanol imports remain relatively small, averaging 183 b/d in the first half, up from 19 b/d in the same period last year. Nearly all undenatured ethanol imports for fuel use arrive from Brazil, with the country's sugarcane-based ethanol used as feedstock at LanzaJet's sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plant in Georgia. US ethanol exports may continue to rise in the coming months and years as the growing SAF market provides new demand pathways for ethanol. By Payne Williams Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
![](/_next/image?url=%2F-%2Fmedia%2Fproject%2Fargusmedia%2Fmainsite%2Fimages%2F14-generic-hero-banners%2Fherobanner_1600x530_generic-c.jpg%3Fh%3D530%26iar%3D0%26w%3D1600%26rev%3D-1%26hash%3DFC2BEDE406483FEF5FDB9549159BAC11&w=3840&q=75)
Business intelligence reports
Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.
Learn more