'Tough year' for Ports of Auckland reflected in results

Friday, 3 September 2021

A half-completed automation project was just one of the Port of Auckland’s troubles this year.

Ports of Auckland has vowed to do better after huge congestion, automation problems and a fatality blotted its annual results.

“This year has been tough. The combined impact of the pandemic and a fatal accident a year ago has had a heavy impact on our people and the business,” interim chief executive Wayne Thompson said.

While the port's annual net profit of $45.6 million compared well to the previous year to June’s $23m, it included a significant revaluation of investment property.

Underlying profit fell to $20.7m from $30m, due in large part to Covid-19 response costs and an absence of cruise ships.

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Ports of Auckland’s underlying profit fell $10m as it became heavily congested, prompting some ship to divert to Tauranga.

Other factors included the port's difficulties clearing a mountain of cargo which descended as global supply chains became disrupted and post-lockdown consumer demand soared.

Added to that was the recent departure of its former chief executive Tony Gibson after a poor report on the port's health and safety record.

The port has been the scene of three deaths since 2017, mostly recently in 2020, when 31-year-old Pala’amo (Amo) Kalati was crushed by a container.

Maritime NZ then slapped the company with a notice to urgently improve safety.

Thompson said freight volumes had bounced back to higher-than-expected levels but there was no getting away from the year’s events.

“At the container terminal, the result was congestion and reduced volume. At our multi-cargo terminal, we've seen significantly higher volumes despite pandemic-related shipping delays.

“While we have seen growth in some cargo categories, overall revenue is down, and so is profit.”

Revenue fell to $226.3m, from $231.3m in the previous year, and container throughput fell to 818,238 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units) compared to 880,781 TEUs.

However, more cars and light commercial vehicles were imported, helping to push bulk and break bulk up to 6.67 million tonnes compared to 5.8 million tonnes previously.

Thompson said the port would focus on “getting the essentials right,” cost control, a stronger safety culture and completing automation of its unloading system.

The system was half finished when New Zealand’s borders closed last year, preventing specialists and replacement straddle drivers from entering the country for months.