Logistics

To improve its supply chain to handle increased volume and provide greater reliability, Balco formed a joint venture with publicly listed Patrick Corporation in 2003 called Patrick Portlink (SA).

Operating South Australia’s first inland container terminal, PPSA arranges container supply and transportation using its own train to and from Bowmans as well as handling all related compliance matters.

PPSA provides an integrated container handling depot served by road and rail with a direct rail service connecting the ports of Adelaide and Melbourne on a regular schedule (5 days per week).

Demand for PPSA’s services has grown strongly and the company now transports containers for other hay exporters, tuna food for Port Lincoln and grain from Yorke Peninsula and the Mid North of South Australia. Container trade through the terminal, situated on the Adelaide to Darwin rail line, has grown from 220 containers in July 2003 to around 2000 containers a month in 2009.