PERTH, AUSTRALIA — Western Australia cooperative CBH Group set a May record with 1.87 million tonnes of grain shipped across all four ports, surpassing the volume exported in 2017, while reaching another milestone toward its goal to ship 2 million tonnes a month by 2024.

In its June 20 report, CBH said it exported 13.95 million tonnes from Oct. 1 to May 31, over 1 million tonnes more than initially scheduled and 30% ahead of last year’s pace at the same time.

For the period:

• 2.74 million tonnes were shipped from the Albany zone
• 2.54 million tonnes were shipped from the Esperance zone
• 2.56 million tonnes were shipped from the Geraldton zone
• 6.11 million tonnes were shipped from the Kwinana zone.

The Albany and Kwinana terminals both set new records for May shipping, with Kwinana having achieved records in seven of the past eight months.

The export levels also reflect a record performance by the CBH logistics teams, the cooperative said. For the second time in three months, over 1 million tonnes was moved on rail, with May producing an all-time monthly record of 1.06 million tonnes delivered to its ports and Metro Grain Centre (MGC).

Road transport contractors also have continued to transfer record volumes, setting new monthly highs for total tonnes moved to CBH ports and MGC across the network, as well as in the Kwinana and Albany zones. 

Extending the streak of consecutive monthly records to 14 months, almost 205,000 tonnes were outturned to the domestic market in May.

“These road, rail and shipping achievements have only been made possible by our team and contractors, who have demonstrated commitment and persistence in helping us move these tonnes to customer, safely and efficiently,” CBH said.

Australia enjoyed its third consecutive bumper harvest in 2022-23 as exceptional rains and high commodity prices the previous two years encouraged farmers to plant nearly every available hectare for winter crops, mainly wheat, barley and canola.