The shipping platform

Location: Port Hedland is situated on the NW coast of Western Australia. General overview: A major port for the loading of iron ore. There are 12 berths operating within the inner harbour, four of which are owned and operated by the Port Authority, six owned and operated by BHP Billiton (BHPB) Iron Ore and two owned and operated by the Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) at Herb Elliott Port. Rapid expansion of the port is continuing with two new BHPB berths and one new FMG berth under construction. There is a swinging basin at the head of the harbour. Imports include fuel, general cargo, sulphuric acid and bulk cement. Exports include iron ore, manganese, copper concentrate, chromite, salt and livestock. Traffic figures: Approx 1,500 vessels and over 199,000,000t of cargo handled annually. Load line zone: South Indian Ocean Seasonal Tropical Area, Tropical May 1 to Nov 30, Summer Dec 1 to Apr 30. Max size: Largest vessel: "Anangel Haili", 260,723DWT. Largest single cargo: "Cape Infinity", 247,858t. Deepest Draught: "Kenryu Maru", 19.9m. Longest Ship: "Bao Fu", LOA 330m.