Leading Marine Services provider, Bhagwan Marine has been awarded a contract to supply marine vessels and crew to support construction on Rio Tinto’s Amrun Project.
The Amrun Project is a greenfield bauxite operation in the Weipa / Aurukun region of Western Cape York, Far North Queensland. The new development will eventually replace the existing East Weipa mine centre and develop the high quality bauxite reserves available south of the Weipa Peninsula. Construction includes an Ore Beneficiation Plant, Export Port, Truck Dump Station, Conveying and Stockpiling Facilities supported by Rail Mounted Machines dam, tailings and storage facility and support infrastructure. .
Bhagwan’s scope includes the supply of personnel, vessels, plant and equipment, with a significant percentage of the contractor’s workforce consisting of Indigenous employees from the local community and other regional areas. Indigenous Coxswain traineeships will be rolled out whereby trainees from local communities complete a 2 year trainee program consisting of 4 weeks pre season training, 20 months on the job training and 4 weeks post sea training.
“Winning this new work couldn’t have come at a better time”, said Bhagwan’s Managing Director, Loui Kannikoski. “We will be supplying a variety of tugs, barges, multi-cats and crew transfer vessels to Amrun which is a huge win for us not only in terms of fleet utilisation, but also in providing two years of ongoing work security to some of our amazing crews. Creating new work opportunities for some of the local community is also very satisfying for us.”
