by Glencore Zinc Assets Australia COO and NSS Board Director Sam Strohmayr
Glencore has zinc, lead and copper operations across multiple North Queensland sites including Mount Isa and Townsville. Glencore also operates a number of coal mines in Queensland and New South Wales.
In the Mount Isa region, we mine, process and export some of the world’s highest-grade zinc-lead and copper products.
A big part of this is stevedoring, transport and logistics.
Just look at Northern Stevedoring Services (NSS) of which Glencore is part owner.
NSS exports copper cathode processed from the Glencore-owned Copper Refineries Limited plant in Townsville for Glencore-owned Mount Isa Mines (MIM).
It also handles our refined lead ingots from our smelter in Mount Isa and loads these to vessels using proprietary developed equipment.
In other operations, NSS manages imports of copper concentrate which supplements locally produced ore smeltered in Mount Isa.
NSS is the largest stevedore operation in regional Queensland with a growing transport and logistics business.
The business has evolved to meet the demands and expectations of operating beside a commercial and residential centre while growing its capacity and capabilities to encourage new industry.
Crews recently discharged steel and transported consignments straight to the outlets in two northern centres. That steel would be otherwise be brought up from Brisbane and Sydney at a far greater cost.
There are emerging opportunities made viable due to the advanced logistics NSS offers in Townsville, Mackay and Gladstone.
NSS has handled tonnes of equipment including wind turbines and tens of thousands of solar panels used for the growing renewables energy industry.
Defence is also growing business for NSS. The business is helping facilitate both the Australia – Singapore Military Training Initiative and joint US exercises in Shoalwater Bay and other defence exercises near Townsville.
NSS is aware of the emerging critical minerals industry and longer-term government plans to develop an export battery industry. Our capacity and capabilities will be in pole position to realise those plans.
We’re proud that Glencore’s influence has helped put NSS in a position that it can service these new industries and help the north progress.