A BOAT in Western Australia has played host to Australia’s biggest drug haul.

Eight men have been charged over the $1.04 billion drug bust involving a boat in Geraldton on Thursday and face life in jail if they convicted of drug importation.

The massive drug bust tops a 903kg seizure in Melbourne earlier this year in which the drug was found packed inside the hollowed out floorboards of a sea container.

The joint Western Australian and Federal police operation culminated in a pre-dawn raid on the 16m vessel early yesterday, and the arrest of at least six people. All have all faced the Geraldton Magistrate’s Court charged with possessing a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug.

It is understood the drug haul could have fetched more than $1 billion if it had been allowed to hit Australian streets.

Police allege a vessel called Valkoista arrived in Geraldton, in WA’s Mid West region, about 2am on Thursday and the drugs were then offloaded into a white van just before 4am.

Officers intercepted the van as it reversed from the dock, allegedly finding 59 bags containing about 20kg of methamphetamine.

Police arrested the three people inside, including a 33-year-old man from southern Sydney and two other men from NSW, aged 38 and 52.

Officers also boarded Valkoista and arrested three crewmen including a 45-year- old man from the NSW Central Coast and two men from South Australia, aged 48 and 44.

A bag containing about 20kg of methamphetamine was found on the vessel. Police believe the drugs originated from China and were destined for the east coast.

A further 20 search warrants were conducted at residential properties in Sydney, the NSW Central Coast and Adelaide.

Two men from South Australia, both aged 37, were later arrested at a Perth hotel.

Charges include importing a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug, and possessing a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug reasonably suspected of having been unlawfully imported.

Details of the case were only revealed today after a suppression order which prevented publication of any details surrounding the case was lifted.

The order allowed police to conduct further raids and arrests, including today’s in Perth.

The bust was the culmination of a six-month, multi-agency investigation.