Viterra, an agricultural business of Glencore Plc, focuses on handling, processing, distributing and transporting grains and oilseeds around the world.
A large portion of the total came from its two Adelaide ports, which shipped Viterra’s highest ever monthly total of 360,000 tonnes during January.
Tim Krause, general manager Viterra Operations, said the huge shipping tonnages were critical in moving South Australia’s large 2016-17 crop.
“The large harvest has been excellent for growers but securing exports from South Australia is equally as important,” Krause said. “Receiving the crop is only half the job for us, we have an extensive logistics program to outturn the grain and move it to port to meet export demand and prepare for the 2017 harvest. South Australia is competing against other grain growing regions globally so our ability to move the grain quickly, efficiently and while meeting strict quality specifications is crucial to ensuring buyers keep coming to SA to source their grain.”
Krause said total shipping for the 2016-17 season had now passed 2 million tonnes.
“It is pleasing to see 11 different exporters booking shipping capacity for the season, exporting to a variety of end-users in Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa,” Krause said. “The introduction of long-term agreements has been an important contributor to this. We’ve also been able to add extra shipping capacity to our stem due to the efficiency of our upcountry logistics. The tonnages are a real credit to our teams who have been coordinating a smooth shipping schedule with significant rail and road outturn movements.”
Viterra’s sites are busy with 24-hour rail and road operations to meet exports, Krause said.
“We will continue to focus on high shipping benchmarks to manage the crop for growers, meet the needs of our export customers and continue our preparations for the 2017 harvest,” he said.
In mid-January Viterra broke its all-time receival record for its South Australian (SA) sites in a season with more than 8.55 million tonnes of grain delivered. It beat the previous record of 8.54 million tonnes in 2001-02.
Viterra, an agricultural business of Glencore Plc, focuses on handling, processing, distributing and transporting grains and oilseeds around the world. Glencore Agriculture handles, processes and markets agricultural commodities, including grain, oilseeds, pulses, sugar, rice, cotton, vegetable oils, protein meals and biodiesel. The operations span more than 35 countries worldwide and include marketing offices in 34 countries.
