Country Australia Owned by Asciano Available berths 9 Owner Asciano Limited | Location Geelong Type of harbor Artificial Operations & Security Manager Ken Stanley | |
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The Port of Geelong is located on the shores of Corio Bay at Geelong, Victoria, Australia. The port is the sixth-largest in Australia by tonnage.
Contents
Map of Geelong Harbour, Victoria, Australia
Major commodities handled by the port include crude oil and petroleum products, export grain and woodchips, alumina imports, and fertiliser. Major port industries include Alcoa's Point Henry smelter, AWB Limited's grain elevator, and the Viva Energy oil refinery at Corio.
The Port of Geelong handled $5.6 billion worth of bulk cargo in 2004–05, made up of 12 million tonnes of cargo from 543 ship visits.
History
Before the initial settlement of Geelong, a sandbar across the bay from Point Lillias to Point Henry only allowed small ships to enter the inner harbour. Larger ships were required to drop anchor in the bay, and their cargo was brought into Geelong on lighters. At times it was possible to walk across the bay on the sandbar at low tide.
The first channel through the sandbar was started in 1853, providing less than 4 metres draught for ships. This channel was straightened out and dredged at a depth of 6 metres in the 1860s. In 1881 dredging of a new channel was started which took 12 years to complete. It was named the Hopetoun Channel after the then Governor of Victoria, Lord Hopetoun, who opened it on 20 December 1893.
By the early twentieth century shipping traffic had increased and the existing piers in the city area were proving inadequate. As a result, new port facilities were progressively provided in the North Geelong area.
Management
Management of the channels and port of Geelong was the responsibility of the Geelong Harbor Trust that was formed in December 1905. In addition, the Authority was responsible for the associated ports at Queenscliff, Barwon Heads, Lorne and Apollo Bay.
In 1981, the trust was reconstituted as the Port of Geelong Authority as an attempt to follow modern practice with the naming of organisations responsible for ports operation throughout the world. The authority was privatised by the State Government, being sold to TNT Logistics for $49.6 million on 1 July 1996. The port was later rebranded as Toll GeelongPort after the acquisition of TNT by Toll Holdings. The port is now branded as GeelongPort, and is a part of Asciano Limited, following the demerger of Toll Holdings in 2007.
In 2008 the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) revoked Asciano's exclusive equipment contract with the Port of Geelong. The ACCC found that the compulsory use of Asciano cranes for dry bulk and fertiliser unloading was anti-competitive, and that the negative effects of the arrangement outweighed any productivity improvements derived from use of a single equipment type.
Facilities
Major piers in the Port of Geelong include:
By the early 1900s shipping traffic has increased and the existing piers in the city area were inadequate. As a result, new port developments were started in the North Geelong area.
There are also a number of special purpose piers on Corio Bay: