Fortescue Metals Group's supersized iron ore vessel arrives in Port Hedland
FORTESCUE Metal Group’s first Very Large Ore Carrier, named after Andrew Forrest’s wife, has arrived in Port Hedland after its maiden voyage from China.
The FMG Nicola is the first of eight VLOCs the company has ordered to maximise tonnages per ship, improved loading rates and safe manoeuvring within the port and the channel.
When fully operational, the VLOC fleet will provide about 12 per cent of Fortescue’s total shipping requirements.
FMG chairman Andrew Forrest and his sister Jane and brother David joined the vessel for part of its journey from China.
Mr Forrest described the experience as immensely educational and said it had allowed a first-hand experience of the trials and challenges of ocean-crossing maiden voyages.
It also demonstrated the clear competitive advantages the Fortescue VLOC design had over conventional Cape Size or Vale Max vessels.
Ms Forrest also welcomed the FMG Nicola to Port Hedland.
“Construction of Fortescue’s VLOC fleet is another major milestone on Fortescue’s journey and a valuable complement to our global scale operations and infrastructure,” Mr Forrest said.
“Family is at the heart of Fortescue’s values and I am very proud that the ships will be named after my wife Nicola and our children.”
Chief executive Nev Power said FMG Nicola was the culmination of the hard work, ingenuity and dedication of the Fortescue team.
“Fortescue also thanks the Pilbara Ports Authority (PPA) and Port Hedland Pilots (PHP) for their expertise that helped us to ensure that the innovative VLOC design maximised safety and manoeuvrability in the Port Hedland channel,” he said.
“Our partnerships with the Yangzijiang Xinfu Shipyard and Guangzhou Shipyard International for construction of the eight VLOCs have continued to build our strong collaboration and relationships with China.”
Three more VLOCs, FMG Grace, FMG Sophia and FMG Sydney, are under construction at Yangzijiang Shipyard and a further four VLOCs are being built at Guangzhou Shipyard International.
The delivery of the final vessel is expected in mid-2018.
The agreement is the biggest direct funding arrangement provided by a major Chinese financier for a non-Chinese company in Australia.
FMG shares were off 20 cents, or 3.18 per cent, to $6.10 at 10.50am.
The iron ore spot price was $US80.49 a tonne.
In November, Fortescue announced a $US473 million ($626 million)debt deal with China Development Bank to fund the VLOC fleet.