BLACK coal creates WHITE lights and is shipped to China from BLUE water ports

Looking out over a coal mine. 

On Tuesday, January 4, we visited the Macquarie Generation Power Station and the Port Waratah Coal Services at Port New Castle.  Macquarie Generation produces and sells energy in the National Electricity Market.  Our guide told us that Macquarie produces forty percent of New South Wales’ electricity and fifteen percent of Eastern Australia’s electricity needs.  Port Waratah Coal Services (PWCS) operates two coal terminals with a total ship loading capacity of 113 million ton per annum, making the port the world’s largest and most efficient coal handling operation.  It is obvious that the sheer volume of coal that both Macquarie and PWCS deals with makes the coal industry a large part of Australia’s economy. 

A stacker at PWCS, which creates
the stockpiles of
coal before it is loaded onto the vessels. 

Both Macquarie Generation Power Station and PWCS matter to the Australian economy because both of these businesses utilize coal in different manners.  After coal has been mined, it is can be used in power stations to generate electricity or brought by train to ports where it is exported to the rest of the world.  Both businesses employ Australia’s work force.  For example, Macquarie employs more than 600 people (both employees and contractors).

PWCS is especially essential in the global economy.  A PWCS export graph showed that in 2010 it exported 57% of its coal to Japan, 16% to South Korean, 13% to Taiwan, and 8% to China.  We learned from Dr. Lynne Chester that China is building the equivalent of two new coal-fired power stations each week.  This means that China’s demand for Australian coal will grow tremendously in the future.  PWCS is already responding to this increase in demand by building a new terminal. 

Even though Australia appears to be adversely affected by global climate change, it is also the world’s biggest exporter of coal.  This is a contradiction because studies show that burning coal contributes to global warming, but if Australia exports a majority of its coal, then Australia should not be the country experiencing global warming.  Instead, the countries it exports to (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and China) should be more adversely affected by global climate change than Australia.  Evan Jones told us that Australia is the most urban country in the world; 40% of the population lives in two cities (Sydney and Melbourne).  This may explain Australia’s warming trends. 

An interesting fact I learned today which the mining group should incorporate into their presentation is that on average, 48 vessels at a time are waiting outside of Port Waratah waiting to be loaded with coal.  This extreme bottleneck in the port seems very inefficient.  How can this bottleneck be smoothed out to create less wait time for coal-moving vessels?  What prevents PWCS from adding new terminals and expanding even more?  Statistics show that demand for coal through the Port has grown by more than 32% in the past decade.  

Feeding the wild kangaroos.  Hop hop!