Barry Beach Marine Terminal

The Barry Beach Marine Terminal is the main supply depot for our Bass Strait oil and gas operations.  Each year it facilitates the warehousing and transport of thousands of tonnes of food, supplies, fuel and equipment to 21 offshore platforms and installations that serve as bases for drilling, oil and gas production and processing.  

Operating five days a week, the Marine Terminal is also a critical lifeline for the 300 personnel and contractors who live and work on the offshore platforms. Located near Port Welshpool in South Gippsland, Barry Beach Marine Terminal is 240 km south east of Melbourne.

The 360-metre Barry Beach wharf accommodates a 110-tonne pedestal crane to lift the cargo to and from supply vessels. These contracted vessels are based at Barry Beach Marine Terminal and operate 24 hours a day to service 21 offshore platforms and installations. The vessels are able to operate close to the offshore platforms and move between platforms loading and unloading cargo, even in the stormy conditions of Bass Strait, with the aid of specialised navigational equipment and propulsion systems.

Around half of their cargo is the bulk product essential for drilling and oil and gas production: diesel, water, glycol, barites and cement. These are carried in below-deck tanks. The balance of their cargo is food, machinery and general cargo needed to support and maintain the offshore platforms and installations. This cargo is transported on-deck packed in specially designed containers.

Specialist contract vessels also work from the Marine Terminal. Anchor handling vessels or large tugs are used to move mobile offshore drilling rigs. Diving support vessels, massive barges to carry pipe or steel jackets, and vessels to lay pipelines are often required for offshore construction projects.

The Marine Terminal’s warehouse stocks around 5,000 different items essential for the offshore operations. The warehouse facilities include separate storage areas for most classes of dangerous goods.

Specialist Food Shed
As the offshore platforms operate 24 hours a day, so do the platforms’ fully equipped kitchens. Qualified cooks serve thousands of meals each year to the 300 personnel and contractors who live and work on the offshore platforms.

Esso’s specialist catering contractor manages all food services including ordering, logistics and catering. Each platform receives weekly food deliveries from the Marine Terminal. Food destined for the offshore platforms is first delivered by refrigerated truck to the specialist food shed at the Marine Terminal. From there it is packed into three types of food containers: frozen, chilled (for fresh fruit and vegetables, milk, etc.) and dry goods. Onboard the supply vessels, the containers are plugged into special connections to keep food at the right temperature.

Every year, around 70,000 tonnes of cargo is shipped to the Bass Strait platforms from Barry Beach. This freight is transported in over 1,000 different containers, baskets and frames.