World's Biggest Coal Export Port Has Shutdowns at Two Terminals

July 8 (Bloomberg) -- BHP Billiton-Mitsubishi Alliance and Prime Infrastructure Group shut berths at two terminals at Australia's Hay Point port, the world's biggest export harbor for coal, to carry out planned maintenance.

Prime shut Berth 2 at Hay Point port's Dalrymple Bay in Queensland on July 6 and the closure will last until July 28, Inchcape Shipping Services Pty said on its website. The BHP- Mitsubishi Alliance's Hay Point terminal berth shutdown started yesterday and will last until Aug. 10, BHP Billiton Ltd. spokeswoman Fiona Martin said in an e-mailed statement.

Hay Point port, about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) north of Brisbane, has two terminals and the capacity to export 129 million metric tons of coal a year. The harbor connects to the Goonyella rail system, the busiest network in Queensland, which services 22 mines operated by companies that include, Xstrata Plc, Rio Tinto Group and Peabody Energy Corp.

The closure of one of four berths at Dalrymple Bay, which has an export capacity of 85 million tons, is to carry out "routine maintenance," Inchcape Shipping said. About 80 percent of the coal shipped from the terminal is used for steelmaking. Inchcape arranges ship dockings.

Hay Point terminal has two berths and a capacity to export 44 million tons of steelmaking coal a year. The BHP Billiton- Mitsubishi Alliance is conducting work on a fender, a cushioning device that absorbs impact. The alliance, or BMA as it's known, is a joint venture between BHP and Tokyo-based Mitsubishi Corp.