“Although this record is of benefit to the industry, PWCS is also cognisant of the vessel queuing problems presently facing the coal industry,” the company said.

PWCS said it is working with Hunter Valley Coal Chain (HVCC) members to squeeze every available tonne of capacity out of the coal chain system.

The company also said it was looking for alternative options to the “turn of arrival” system – where vessels are loaded in the order they arrive off the coast of Newcastle, as ordered by the coal producers – to encourage reliability and reduce the need for queuing whilst giving certainty to coal producers.