More than 60 regional growers and supply chain partners joined AgConnex at the company’s flagship Wumbulgal grain storage and handling site to tour upgraded site operations and view early construction progress on the new 1.5km rail siding.

Attendees heard from CEO Geoff Barker, as well as key supply chain partners including Qube, Riordan Grain and FlexiGrain.

Mr Barker said it is an important at this time of year to let growers know about site improvements, share market insights and detail plans for the upcoming 2025 grain harvest.

“We’ve made significant improvements to the Wumbulgal site over the past two plus years, so it’s great to share this progress with growers, so they understand what we are offering and how this can help and add value this harvest.

“Obviously the new rail siding an exciting, high-impact addition to the facility, but we have also made major improvements in the way the site operates, our equipment, storage capacity and importantly in our team’s expertise and skills.

“We’ve also built some very strong downstream partnerships with the likes of Qube, Riordan, FlexiGrain, Allied and others to create valuable market opportunities for Riverina growers, particularly in relation to speciality grains.

“It means we can offer regional crop farmers the best possible value for their grain, efficiently and quickly.”

Attendees expressed interest was in the new rail siding, currently under construction as a key development component for the region’s Western Riverina Connect (WR Connect) intermodal freight hub between Griffith and Leeton.

Funded by State and Local government investment, it will be accessible to any rail operator. Current site tenants include AgConnex, Medlog Australia and Pyrenees Hay.

“The siding is ideally situated alongside our silo complex and will more than triple the train capacity we can load,” Mr Barker explained.

“We currently load on the single main line between other rail operators, holding a train for six to eight hours.

“Once the new siding is operational, we will be able to load trains as fast as we can get grain to them, significantly increasing our transfer capacity.

Mr Barker says the Wumbulgal site is capable of handling double the grain volumes within its existing infrastructure.

“We have tripled our throughput since 2022, and can easily handle similar increases again this year within our current facilities.

“So, we are not limited by our storage capacity to take advantage of the immediate benefits the new siding will deliver.

“The extra capacity and opportunity presented by the rail siding will improve freight costs for growers, and allow us to be even more agile as market opportunities present value for our farmers.

“The upshot is that growers will benefit with even better pricing than what we already have on offer.”

The new siding is expected to be complete by late October or early November, making the facility available for this year’s harvest. Further updates will be provided as works progress.

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