JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The Port Waratah Coal Services (PWCS) has approved a A$670-million expansion programme at its Kooragang Island terminal, in New South Wales, which would add another 20-million tons to the company’s nameplate capacity.

The works were scheduled to be completed by the end of 2011 in order for PWCS to meet its contractual obligation of handling 123,6-million tons of coal in 2012.

PWCS said in a statement on Wednesday that the expansion works would be undertaken in an effort to manage the ongoing demand for Hunter Valley coal, and to honour long-term coal export contracts, which were recently signed by PWCS and Hunter Valley coal producers.

The works would include the extension of two key coal-stockpiling pads, the replacement of two coal stacking machines, a new 330-m coal loading berth, and the deconstruction of redundant stackers.

The expansion is the largest single advance in terms of capacity addition and expenditure at PWCS in more than ten years and the biggest in a long line of ongoing infrastructure expansion programmes, the most recent being the largely completed A$458-million Project 3Exp, which lifted PWCS nameplate capacity to from 102-million tons to 113-million tons in late 2009.

The latest capital spend took PWCS’ total expenditure on coal loading infrastructure over the past 12 years to more than A$1,6-billion.

Meanwhile, PWCS GM Graham Davidson has noted that a producer export allocation reduction of 1,7-million tons to be applied on a pro-rata basis, owing to coal loading shortfalls over January.

PWCS loaded eight-million tons in January, despite being scheduled to load 9,7-million tons. Davidson noted that the shortfall was owing to internal factors such as equipment breakdowns and external factors including adverse weather, power supply failures and vessel delay issues.

“January was an unusually disappointing month, given that coal loading records were set in the later months of 2009.”

“It’s regrettable that the reduction has to take place, but it’s necessary in order to keep demurrage costs as low as possible. We expect that new equipment and power-source arrangements coming on-line at PWCS over the coming months will improve reliability.”

For the calendar year of 2009, Hunter Valley Coal Chain throughput increased to 93-million tons.