The Port of Eden is a small

seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as ...

situated in

Twofold Bay Twofold Bay is an open oceanic embayment that is located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The bay was named by George Bass, for its shape of two bights. The northern bight is called Calle Calle Bay; while the souther ...

, adjacent to the town of Eden, located in the

South Coast South Coast is a name often given to coastal areas to the south of a geographical region or major metropolitan area. Geographical Australia *South Coast (New South Wales), the coast of New South Wales, Australia, south of Sydney * South Coast (Q ...

region of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. The Port is home to one of the largest fishing fleets in New South Wales; and woodchip export is currently the major trade for the port, exporting for the year to 30 June 2011. Major vessel movements occur between

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

and

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic ...

. Principal imports are break bulk and machinery and equipment, mainly for the oil and gas industry. Principal exports are hardwood and softwood woodchips, softwood logs, explosives, and machinery and equipment for the oil and gas industry. Since 1 July 2014, the port has been managed by Port Authority of NSW, a corporation owned by the

NSW Government The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of New South Wales. It is currently held by a coalition of the Liberal Party and the National Party. The Governmen ...

Industries

The port is a principal export point for timber products. During the year ended 30 June 2011, South East Fibre Exports Pty Limited exported in woodchips to customers located in Japan and Korea. Woodchip storage and packaging facilities were constructed by Harris Daishowa in 1971. A substantial fishing fleet also operates from the port and from Snug Cove. Minor port uses include import and export services for the towns of Eden, Bega, Bombala and

Cooma Cooma is a town in the south of New South Wales, Australia. It is located south of the national capital, Canberra, via the Monaro Highway. It is also on the Snowy Mountains Highway, connecting Bega with the Riverina. At the , Cooma had a ...

, and as a stopover for national and international

cruise ships Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as "sho ...

. In 1960

Mobil Mobil is a petroleum brand owned and operated by American oil and gas corporation ExxonMobil. The brand was formerly owned and operated by an oil and gas corporation of the same name, which itself merged with Exxon to form ExxonMobil in 1999. ...

constructed a dedicated wharf, tanks and plant for small-scale petroleum imports and distribution to southern New South Wales. Approximately 70 commercial vessels visited the Port of Eden during the year ended 30 June 2012; including two passenger cruise ships. Civilian shipping movements in the port are regulated by a harbour master appointed by

NSW Maritime NSW Maritime, the trading name of Maritime Authority of New South Wales, was an agency of the Government of New South Wales, Australia responsible for marine safety, regulation of commercial and recreational boating and oversight of port operati ...

. The port is also shared with the

Department of Defence Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philippin ...

and serviced approximately 30

Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister o ...

ships for the year ended 30 June 2012. The Navy facility consists of a wharf, an access jetty and road, and a land-based

munitions Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weap ...

store from the bay and surrounded by a exclusion zone.

Facilities

The port consists of two commercial shipping wharves, the Mobil petroleum wharf, a cargo storage area and ancillary facilities. The Breakwater Wharf caters for the timber industry, the fishing fleet and cruise shipping. The wharf is long with depths ranging from to the landward end and seaward, with a tidal variation of . The wharf itself is concrete with rubber fending. In 2003 a multi-purpose wharf and munitions facility was constructed to expand naval repair and refit operations and increase the port's timber export capacity by . The length of the multi-purpose wharf is , accessed via a timber jetty. Berthing depth is but maximum vessel raft is restricted by a low-water fairway depth of . The common-user cargo storage area covers with a gravel surface and sealed internal roads. Storage capacity was estimated to reach in 2010/11.

Cruise terminal

The NSW Government spent on an extension of Breakwater Wharf so that visiting cruise ships do not need to use ship's tenders to bring passengers ashore. The first cruise ship to use the updated wharf was the

Pacific Explorer ''Pacific Explorer'' (previously known as ''Dawn Princess'') is a cruise ship operated since June 2017 by P&O Cruises Australia, a cruise line brand owned by the Carnival Corporation & plc. It is a built by Fincantieri, Italy, in 1997, and fea ...

that visited on 14September 2019. Cruise ships dock at Breakwater Wharf and are currently restricted to in length. On 11April 2022 a proposal was announced to allow more than 60 cruise vessels a year to dock as well as allowing the berth to be used between 10pm and 7am with consultations beginning in mid April ahead of a decision by mid 2023. The proposal would also include additional infrastructure to allow for ''Oasis''-class cruise ships to dock.

History

European history

The bay was first charted by explorer

George Bass George Bass (; 30 January 1771 – after 5 February 1803) was a British naval surgeon and explorer of Australia. Early years Bass was born on 30 January 1771 at Aswarby, a hamlet near Sleaford, Lincolnshire, the son of a tenant farmer, George ...

in 1797 and has been used for commercial

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industr ...

and fishing since the 1840s. From the 1850s to 1950s the port was serviced by steamship companies, including the Illawarra Steam Navigation Company.

Gallery

Bega(Ship)AtEden1903.jpg, Illawarra Steam Navigation Company's S.S. ''Bega'' at Eden in 1903. Woodchips for export in New South Wales.jpeg, Woodchips await export to Japan from the Harris-Daishowa mill near Eden. Eden port from Boydtown.jpg, View of port from Boydtown. Eden Port.jpg, Port showing slipway

References

External links

Official website
* {{Australian cruise terminals Eden South Coast (New South Wales) Eden, New South Wales Fishing communities in Australia