澳大利亚在中国煤炭市场所占份额明显下降，部分原因是港口和铁路基础设施存在严重瓶颈，而近年来，这一问题一直困扰着澳大利亚过热的经济。煤炭是澳大利亚最大的出口大宗商品。

Australia has lost substantial market share in China in coal, its biggest export commodity, partly because of the severe infrastructure bottlenecks in ports and rail, which have plagued its overheating economy in recent years.

中国海关总署周二公布的数据显示，去年，中国从澳大利亚进口的煤炭减少了34%，至452万吨。越南成为中国最大的供应国，进口量跃升23%，至2460万吨。中国是全球最大的煤炭消费国。

China, the world’s largest consumer of the fuel, reduced its coal imports from Australia by 34 per cent to 4.52m tonnes last year, according to figures released yesterday in Beijing by the Chinese customs authorities. Vietnam was its biggest foreign supplier, with sales jumping 23 per cent to 24.6m tonnes.

这项数据将使澳大利亚国内业已存在的相关争论更加激烈：作为全球最大的煤炭出口国，怎样才是澳大利亚摆脱基础设施能力束缚的最佳方式。这种束缚已经限制了其资源企业充分抓住全球需求不断增长这一机遇。

The data will add to an already intense debate in Australia, the world’s biggest coal exporter, over the best way to solve infrastructure capacity constraints that is preventing its resources companies from capitalising fully on booming global demand.

本周早些时候，澳大利亚新任总理陆克文(Kevin Rudd)宣布成立了全国基础设施委员会，希望凭借工党(Labor party)在联邦和州政府的绝对权力，帮助他比保守的前任政府更快找到解决方法。

Earlier this week, Kevin Rudd, the new prime minister, announced the creation of a national infrastructure council, hoping that his Labor party’s clean sweep of power at both the federal and state levels will help produce faster solutions than its conservative predecessor.

不过，必和必拓(BHP Billiton)昨日的声明突显出，缓解澳大利亚出口枢纽的拥堵问题面临巨大困难。必和必拓宣布，公司已经批准参与纽卡斯尔港的大规模扩建。纽卡斯尔港是全球最大的热煤出口港，目前的煤炭年装卸能力为8900万吨，预计扩建项目将使其煤炭装卸能力增加最多3000万吨。

But the difficulty in easing congestion at Australia’s export hubs was highlighted yesterday when BHP Billiton announced it had approved its share of a significant expansion of the port of Newcastle, the world’s largest thermal coal export facility.

尽管各方共同努力加快项目建设进程，但新设施的启用最早也要等到2010年下半年。

Despite concerted efforts to fast track the project, which will add up to 30m tonnes a year to existing coal loading capacity of 89m tonnes, shipments from the new facility will begin only in late 2010.