Per tonne payments range from $15/t to a distribution of $56.02/t for the Western Australian noodle wheat pool.

The final pool return for benchmark grade APW is $333 a tonne in the eastern pool and $328 a tonne in the western pool.

The payment for the flagship APW paygrade in the east coast pool was $20.62/t.

AWB said it received 2.7 million tonnes across its eastern and western pools for 2008-09, with a gross value exceeding $870 million.

AWB general manager commodities Mitch Morison said the company’s pools had performed well in what was the first season after wheat exports were fully deregulated.

“Our pools exceeded the prices initially estimated at harvest in 2008 for almost all grades and performed well compared against cash alternatives, despite the world market falling away badly during 2009,” Mr Morison said.

“Export shipments have occurred both in bulk and containers, with our sales program targeting markets in North Asia, the Middle East, Africa and South-East Asia, with smaller quantities to Pacific rim countries and durum wheat to Europe, along with domestic sales in Australia,” Mr Morison said.

Meanwhile, on the new pool front, CBH Grain closed its 2009-10 wheat pool, available in SA and Victoria, last Friday.

CBH Grain’s manager eastern Australia Chris Ayers said the pool was closed as the pool management committee was comfortable with volumes reached.

“We will continue to focus on protecting the pool equity with the aim to ensure we maximize returns for our pool participants,” Mr Ayers said.

“Our harvest pool for wheat was well supported by South Australian growers again this harvest and it received strong interest in its first harvest open for Victorian growers.”

Mr Ayers said that based on the industry benchmark APW1 grade, the current Estimated Pool Return (EPR) for the South Australian Wheat Pool was $250t and $252/t in Victoria.