Townsville - Port of the Year

The Port of Townsville has won the Australian Port of the Year award at the Australian Shipping and Maritime Industry Awards in Sydney last night. Port of Townsville CEO Ranee Crosby said that being acknowledged by our peers and taking out the top honour was a great achievement at these prestigious industry awards. "This is a wonderful honour and a fabulous endorsement of our team’s hard work," Ms Crosby said. "The award reflects the truly remarkable work that our people at the Port do, every day, to serve our customers and communities in Northern Queensland.  "Through our 30-year sustainability roadmap - Port Vision 2050 - we have set out ambitious plans to improve the prosperity of our region, to contribute towards a climate positive future, improve the liveability for our community and foster an environment where our people thrive.  "These initiatives are at the centre of our vision to be Australia’s Port for the Future. "This is the third time that Townsville Port has taken out the award – the last time being two consecutive years in 2015 and 2016 – which is a further nod to the tremendous work and commitment of our team." The judges said that the:  "[The] Port of Townsville is firmly established as a key player within the Australian port industry and therefore a worthy winner of this year’s Port or Terminal of the Year award." `What really impressed the judges was the Port recently completing several major projects that have significantly improved its capacity to handle and store heavy and oversized cargo safely and efficiently. "These included berth extensions; wharf upgrades; new cargo terminals; and cranes, together with tailoring a range of facilities and services to minimise wait times and optimise cargo handling procedures, such as completion of several roadwork projects including a recently completed truck staging area to improve heavy and wide vehicle access to multiple laydown areas." The Port of Townsville is Australia’s largest exporter of zinc, copper, lead and fertilizer and sugar bulk trades, Northern Australia’s largest importer of containers and motor vehicles and a key import hub for project cargo destined for the region’s mines and major infrastructure projects. Finalists in the Australian Port or Terminal award included: BHP Port Shipping Team (WAIO), DO World Sydney Terminal, Port of Brisbane and the Port of Eden (Port Authority of NSW).