Rail freight upgrades at Moora and Cranbrook are playing a critical role in moving Western Australia’s largest ever grain harvest, helping get more than 24 million tonnes of product to port faster.
Delivered late last year under the $200 million Agricultural Supply Chain Improvements program, the works were jointly funded by the Albanese and Cook Governments alongside investment from CBH Group.
The Federal Government contributed $160 million and the WA Government $40 million to the program, which targets targeted rail freight upgrades across key grain corridors.
As the 2025–26 harvest enters its out-loading phase, the focus has shifted from paddock to port. Efficient rail movements are essential to capitalise on peak export pricing windows in competitive global grain markets.
At Moora, north of Perth, a new loading facility and extended rail siding with a passing loop are enabling more wagon trains to be loaded in significantly less time.
At Cranbrook in the inland south-west, a realigned rail siding and a fixed loading facility have cut the loading time of a 60-wagon train from around 7 hours to 4 hours.
Federal Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Minister Catherine King said the upgrades were essential to support the State’s growing harvest volumes.
“WA grain exports contribute significantly to the national economy and the Albanese and Cook Governments are working together through ASCI to support this sector,” Minister King said. “The average harvest size in WA has increased significantly over the past five years, and the infrastructure delivered through ASCI is essential to supporting this growth.”
Federal Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said the projects strengthened both safety and productivity across the freight network.
“The upgrades at Moora and Cranbrook make it quicker, easier, and safer to load more grain onto rail, strengthen our agricultural supply chain and improve the performance of WA’s freight network,” Minister Collins said.
Across the program, rail siding upgrades at 11 CBH receival sites are designed to reduce bottlenecks and improve train turnaround times. Cranbrook and Moora join Brookton, Broomehill and Konnongorring as completed projects, with Ballidu and Perenjori scheduled to progress in 2026.
A separate ASCI project to upgrade the Midland Line between Carnamah and Mingenew has entered the design and procurement phase. When complete, it will allow 25 per cent more grain per wagon to be transported to the Port of Geraldton.
WA Agriculture and Food Minister Jackie Jarvis said timing was critical in global grain markets.
“These latest projects showcase how ASCI infrastructure is reducing bottlenecks in our supply chain and ensuring more grain gets to port during the early season export demand and price peak,” Minister Jarvis said.
With the record harvest valued at approximately $10 billion to the WA economy, the rail freight upgrades are reinforcing the link between regional infrastructure investment and export performance.