Fortescue railway

Fortescue Railway
Three GE Dash 9-44CWs haul a train across the Turner River in July 2008
Overview
Type	Heavy rail
Status	Operational
Locale	Pilbara, Western Australia
Termini	Christmas Creek mine Cloud Break mine Port Hedland
Operation
Opened	5 April 2008
Operator(s)	Fortescue Metals Group
Depot(s)	Thomas Yard
Technical
Line length	280 km (173.98 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)

The Fortescue Railway, owned and operated by Fortescue Metals Group (FMG), is a private rail network in the Pilbara region of Western Australia built to carry iron ore opening in 2008. Upon completion, the railway line was the heaviest haul railway in the world, designed for 40 tonnes axleloads, 2.5 to 5 tonnes heavier than the other Pilbara iron ore rail systems. On 4 November 2014, FMG Rail commenced trialing 42 tonnes axle loads.

Additionally to the FMG line, a number of other networks operate in the region. Rio Tinto operate the Hamersley & Robe River railway, while BHP Billiton operate the Goldsworthy and Mount Newman railways.

FMG originally planned to use the existing railway lines, owned and operated by BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, to develop its Cloud Break deposit. Lengthy legal battles however forced the company to spend A$2.5 billion to construct its own line.

Construction on the 280 kilometre line from the Cloud Break mine to the Herb Elliott Port at Port Hedland commenced in November 2006. The current network consists of 620 kilometres of track. The line was scheduled to be fully operational within 18 months. A cyclone in March 2007 killed two workers at the project and led to delays. The first train from the mine to the port ran on 5 April 2008. In December 2012, the line was extended to the new Solomon Mine.

The journey from mine to port takes approximately five hours and, on average, 14 trains a day are operated. The line is open-access, meaning Fortescue is willing to allow other mining companies to use it for their operations.

Before deciding to construct its own line, in June 2004 FMG lodged an application with the National Competition Council of Australia to use part of the Goldsworthy and Mount Newman railways.

In June 2010, the Australian Competition Tribunal ruled that FMG be granted access to Rio Tinto's Robe River line and BHP's Billiton's Goldsworthy line but not to the busier Hamersley and Mount Newman lines. Treasurer Wayne Swan suggested that several advantages would accrue from access to the rail lines by third parties. It would increase competition, reduce duplication of infrastructure, and reduce environmental damage.