Pilbara Ports which includes Port Hedland revealed a record breaking throughput of 804.1 million tonnes for the financial year 2025 – 2026. Cargo volumes handled in 12 month period exceeded the previous record of 775.7 million tonnes set in 2024 – 2025.
Pilbara comprises the West Australian ports of Ashburton, Dampier, Port Hedland and Varanus Island, and it was the largest throughput increase registered since 2017 – 2018.
Iron ore exports dominate business at the ports comprising some 759.4 million tonnes of the 804.1 million tonnes total throughput. Other commodities handled include 26 million tonnes of LNG and 5.3 million tonnes of salt.
Pilbara Ports Chief Executive Officer Samuel McSkimming said, “Moving more than 800 million tonnes safely through our ports is a significant achievement.”
“This achievement demonstrates the Pilbara’s importance to the Western Australian economy, while reinforcing the need for continued investment, reliable operations and future trade diversification across our ports.”The exports from the ports were valued at $150 billion.investment, reliable operations and future trade diversification across our ports.“This achievement demonstrates the Pilbara’s importance to the Western Australian economy, while reinforcing the need for continued investment, reliable operations and future trade diversification across our ports,” he stated.Port Hedland handled 580.4 million tonnes of cargo in FY2025 – 2026, while Dampier handled 178.3 million tonnes