Specialised Container Transport (SCT) is an interstate transport company in Australia, with facilities in Melbourne, Adelaide, Parkes, and Perth. The company was founded in 1974 as trucking company SCT Logistics.

History

In the mid 1990s, the rail operator at the time, the National Rail Corporation, decided to discontinue the use of refrigerated vans, louvred vans, and boxcars on its trains. At the same time, the Hilmer Report into rail competition was released, enabling private operators the use of publicly owned railway track in Australia.

SCT had a customer base who wished to retain their use, so a number of surplus covered wagons were acquired, and a 'hook and pull' agreement was reached with V/Line Freight and Australian National to haul the trains. As a result SCT operated the first private rail service in Australia on July 13 1995. The initial terminals for the service were at Dynon in Melbourne; and leased facilities at Keswick, Adelaide; and Kewdale, Perth. Purpose built facilities were later built at North Laverton, Melbourne; Regency Park, Adelaide; and Forrestfield, Perth.

In 2000 operation of the trains from Melbourne though to Perth was taken over by Freight Australia, with the use of a specially equipped fuel tanker to transfer the fuel to locomotives while the train was under way. Crew vans were also introduced, for the accommodation of train crew on the long journey across the Nullarbor Plain. The company also owns and operates its own locomotives for shunting wagons in its terminals. In November 2006 SCT commenced running trains from a new terminal in Parkes in New South Wales to Perth.

Today

Specialised Container Transport now operate trains between Melbourne, Adelaide, Parkes, and Perth; along with road transport connections from its terminals. A site in Queensland has also been purchased for future expansion. The trains are 1.8 kilometres long and carry 8000-9000 tonnes of freight, a total of approximately 800,000 tonnes of freight a year. The company is the major competitor of Pacific National , who dominate rail freight in Australia. In the 2004-05 financial year their Laverton terminal moved around 13,000 TEU and almost 408,000 tonnes of non-containerised goods by rail as well as almost 9,000 TEU and 728,000 tonnes non-containerised goods by road. It now employs 530 plus casuals, and a turnover of more than $200 million.

As part of the sale conditions of SCT's haulage provider Freight Australia to Pacific National, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) attached special conditions to the sale to ensure competition in the rail freight industry. The company has received 9 refurbished G class diesel locomotives from Pacific National for use on SCT's trains, as well as the lease of 3 NR class locomotives until SCT's own 11 recently-ordered locomotives are operational and available for service. Pacific National is also required to continue the 'hook and pull' contract with SCT until these locomotives arrive, the first of which entered service in January 2008. 82 new in-house designed rail vans have also been purchased for general freight, as well as the "Greater Freighter" vans, the largest in Australia in terms of both height and capacity, being close to six metres high but lighter and of higher capacity than standard double-stacked shipping containers. Used between Adelaide, Parkes and Perth, 35 were initially built.

References

External links

• Official site
• SCT locomotive fleet