A NEW rail service between Ultima and the Port of Melbourne has started up, providing access to international markets for agricultural producers in the Mallee region of Victoria.
The service will operate a regularly twice per week with the vision to increase the number of services over time.
The service commenced following three months of construction and close to three years of planning and approvals. It is a collaboration between Qube Logistics, Pentarch Group and Pickering Transport Group.
The project brought together Pentarch’s existing hay storage and production facility, Qube’s specialised logistics infrastructure and the Pickering Transport Group’s ability to manage multi-modal transport shifts from Ultima to the Port of Melbourne.
“We are pleased to be offering this new service to connect our Victorian regional producers to international markets through our integrated logistics solutions,” Shaun Harris, general manager of commercial Qube Logistics said.
Pentarch Agriculture CEO Andrew Jackson said the new service was expected to further support the development of the region’s exporters.
“Pentarch is already a significant Australian exporter of hay and with the added support and expertise of Qube and Pickering Transport Group, the new service will assist in Pentarch’s plan to increase its production to 40,000 tonnes per year through its subsidiary Mallee Hay,” he said.
