The Port of Townsville has won the Australian Port of the Year award at the Australian Shipping and Maritime Industry Awards in Sydney last night.

BMA also drew recognition in the safety category for initiatives at its Hay Point Coal Terminal near Mackay.

Port of Townsville chief executive officer Ranee Crosby said that being acknowledged by peers and taking out the top honour was a great achievement at these prestigious industry awards.

“This is a wonderful honour and a fabulous endorsement of our team’s hard work,” Ms Crosby said.

“The award reflects the truly remarkable work that our people at the Port do, every day, to serve our customers and communities in Northern Queensland.

“Through our 30-year sustainability roadmap – Port Vision 2050 – we have set out ambitious plans to improve the prosperity of our region, to contribute towards a climate positive future, improve the liveability for our community and foster an environment where our people thrive.

“These initiatives are at the centre of our vision to be Australia’s Port for the Future.

“This is the third time that Townsville Port has taken out the award – the last time being two consecutive years in 2015 and 2016 – which is a further nod to the tremendous work and commitment of our team.”

BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) took out the safety award at Australian Shipping and Maritime Industry Awards.

Its Hay Point berths – located about 3.5 km offshore – experience dramatic wind, wave and currents, inevitably leading to maritime incidents

As part of the drive towards zero incidents, BMA has implemented physical and organisational controls, such as mooring arrangement analysis and upgrades; terminal vetting questionnaires; failure data capture; snag and wear point reduction; and high-tension berth warning sirens and monitoring.

As a result, there has been a significant reduction in maritime incidents at Hay Point, with BMA committed to sharing this knowledge within the industry.