Johnson Winter & Slattery has advised Co-operative Bulk Handling Limited (CBH) on its new long-term rail haulage and maintenance agreement with Aurizon.
The agreement covers all of CBH’s rail requirements for Western Australian grain harvests, and is for six years with two 2-year options to extend (contingent on Aurizon meeting its relevant contract KPIs).
Watco, CBH’s existing rail services provider, has agreed to transition the contract to Aurizon before the coming grain harvest, and will begin a three-month transition later this month.
The agreement provides for the haulage of grain from regional rail receival sites to export terminals at Geraldton, Kwinana and Albany using CBH’s existing fleet of 10 trains and three Aurizon-owned trains. CBH handles an average annual harvest of 14 million tonnes of grain, with approximately 60% currently on rail.
The Johnson Winter & Slattery team was led by Partners Stuart Clague and Bruce Adkins, assisted by Consultant Darren Grondal, Special Counsel Rebecca Cifelli and Associate Haerim Nam. Partner George Croft assisted on transitional arrangements.
“Given the importance of CBH’s rail operations to its business, we are delighted that CBH put its trust in JWS to advise on its rail services procurement process, including the long term rail services agreement with Aurizon that was the end result,” Johnson Winter & Slattery Partner Stuart Clague said.
“This is one of the largest and most complex rail transportation tasks in Australia. It involves the haulage of the bulk of Western Australia’s grain harvest from about 70 different loading points to four unloading points spread across the State, using a mix of both CBH and Aurizon owned rolling stock.”
Johnson Winter & Slattery worked hand-in-glove with the CBH in-house legal team, led by Head of Legal Richard Codling and Corporate Lawyer Nadia Saba.
CBH is Australia’s largest co-operative, being owned and controlled by approximately 3,700 Western Australian grain growing businesses.
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About Johnson Winter & Slattery
Johnson Winter & Slattery is an independent national Australian law firm with over 65 partners and offices across Australia. We advise major Australian and international corporations and investment funds on their most challenging transactions and disputes across Australia and surrounding regions. Working closely with clients, knowing their business, and appreciating their commercial objectives, we tailor our approach to deliver cost-effective commercial outcomes.
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