About Us

Port Waratah Coal Services Limited (PWCS), located in the Port of Newcastle, NSW, Australia, operates the world's largest and most efficient coal handling operations.

PWCS has an annual shiploading capacity of 102 million tonnes.

PWCS operates two terminals; Carrington and Kooragang and receives, assembles and loads Hunter Valley coal for export to customers around the world.

PWCS is a continuous, 24 hour a day operation, utilising:

• Modern environmental controls
• Advanced quality control techniques
• Computerised management systems to monitor and organise coal movement from mine to port.

Drawing on less than 20 coal suppliers which provide a diversity of coal types and using sophisticated blending and quality control techniques, PWCS is a world leader in coal handling.

PWCS works closely with coal exporters, rail and port organisations to improve communication and joint planning within the Hunter coal handling industry.

Demand for Hunter coal has grown by more than 58% over the past decade. To meet this growth, PWCS has embarked upon a continuous expansion program that has seen throughput capacity rise from 46 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) to the present 102 mtpa capacity. 

This continuing investment, together with the commitment of PWCS employees, will contribute to the constant improvement in the Company’s performance, meeting customer needs now and into the future.

IN ORDER TO MANAGE ITS OHS AND ENVIRONMENTAL OBLIGATIONS, PWCS SITES ARE CLOSED TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC EXCEPT BY INVITATION OR ARRANGEMENT.

Coal Receival

Rail transport carries over 99% of all the Hunter Valley coal moved into PWCS terminals.  Kooragang receives coal exclusively via the rail network.  Carrington can receive coal from rail and road.

Trains enter PWCS on balloon loops and coal is emptied from bottom-dumping wagons. The coal is then transported on a series of conveyors to the stockpile areas.

PWCS supports industry moves to increase the level of coal received by rail which is more efficient and has less impact on the community.

Coal Stacking (Stockpiling)

Coal is conveyed to stacking machines which discharge the coal onto stockpile pads.  Coal is assembled in vessel cargo lots, and total stockpile capacity is over two million tonnes.

PWCS uses windrow and cone crescent stockpile configurations to achieve blended cargoes providing a high level of product uniformity.

Reclaiming/Shiploading (Coal Loading)

Coal is reclaimed from the stockpiles by bucket wheel reclaimers and is carried on a dedicated system of conveyors to the shiploaders.

PWCS can accommodate five ships simultaneously at its berths, with all of these potentially loading at any one time. Vessel sizes range from 20,000 dead-weight tonnes (dwt) up to bulk carriers of 232,000 dwt.

Coal cargoes are reclaimed and moved by conveyor to the two PWCS wharf areas and loaded by shiploading machines directly into the holds of designated vessels.