Cocos (Keeling) Islands

The next stop on my Churchill Fellowship was Cocos (Keeling) Islands in the Indian Ocean.  I chose to visit Cocos as being an Australian territory (just like Norfolk Island) I needed to see what facilities the Commonwealth government has provided them.

Landing Craft Minti Sedaya

Cocos (Keeling) Islands are an atoll with a central lagoon.  The local Cocos Malay people (who are all Australian citizens) live on Home Island, while the Australians live on West Island, which is also the administrative centre of the Island and where the airport is situated.

The port facilities consist of the Home Island jetty & a brand new facility at Rumah Baru on West Island.  James Capstan) capable of carrying 16 containers, a landing craft (Minti Sedaya) capable of carrying 4 containers, and onshore 2 Groves mobile cranes with a lifting capability of 75 tonnes.

  

Barge James Capstan

In addition there is a ferry (Cahaya Baru) operating between Home Island & West Island several times a day with the passenger fare being only $2.50 each way.

The Commonwealth Government has provided all of the port & marine facilities. at both Home Island & West Island, together with the all the Boats. Operation of the port is contracted to Patrick Ports, while the Barges & Landing craft are operated by the Cocos Islands Co-operative Society Ltd.

Rumah Baru

The new port facilities at Rumah Baru on West Island were quite impressive consisting of an artificial offshore island, a connecting bridge to West Island.  The facilities were recently constructed between 2009 & 2011.The offshore Island provides both an area for mooring the barges & handling the containers ashore, and a ferry berth & passenger facilities.

Cargo ships calling at Cocos Islands are required to anchor in the lagoon near Direction Island, being unable to berth at either of the jetties at Home Island & West Island due to the shallow depth.  The landing craft (Minti Sedaya) tows the dumb barge (James Capstan) from the Home Island Jetty to the cargo ship.  Containers are discharged using the ships cranes onto the both the dumb barge & landing craft with 2 tag lines being used to minimise pendulation of the containers during lifting operations.  The Cocos Islands Co-operative Society who perform the stevedoring have a very strong approach to Occupational Health & Safety.

My thanks to Ron Grant from the Cocos Islands Co-operative Society for taking the time to show me the marine facilities & the stevedoring operations.