Who is DP World, the global giant that wants to take charge of Lyttelton Port?
Wednesday, 24 June 2026
DP World has spent two decades building a logistics empire that stretches from ports and warehouses to rail, trucking and freight forwarding, and now its next potential foothold is Lyttelton.
The Dubai government-owned group has joined Ngāti Wheke, Ngāi Tūāhuriri and Taumutu rūnanga in a consortium seeking a long-term licence to run Lyttelton Port.
Under the Tōnui proposal, the council-owned Christchurch City Holdings Ltd would keep ownership of the port’s land and strategic assets. But a new company jointly owned by DP World and the three rūnanga would take charge of its operations.
That would bring one of the world’s largest port businesses into the centre of the South Island freight network.
DP World reported revenue of US$24.4 billion and operating earnings of US$6.4b last year. It handled 93.4 million containers and spent US$3.1b expanding its network. The company says it operates in more than 80 countries and moves about 10% of world trade.
Where DP World has delivered
It presents itself as much more than a company that loads and unloads ships.
The group says it provides “end-to-end” logistics, combining ports and terminals with freight forwarding, warehouses, marine services and inland transport. Its accounts identify the government of Dubai as its ultimate owner, while the company lists more than 60 ports and terminals and 303 logistics offices worldwide.
There is evidence DP World can invest in and improve ports.
It says automation at its Brisbane terminal increased quay-line productivity by 13%, while container volumes grew 18.6% between 2019 and 2021.
The group spent US$3.1b on capital projects across its network in 2025, while its Posorja terminal in Ecuador ranked 20th in the World Bank’s latest container-port performance index and was among the five biggest improvers since 2020.
DP World already has an Auckland-based logistics operation. The company says its New Zealand services include freight forwarding, warehousing, customs clearance and inland transport. A Lyttelton licence would be its first operation of a New Zealand port.
Performance across the Tasman
DP World runs container terminals in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Fremantle, handling about 30% of the containers processed at those ports. It has also expanded into trucking, container parks, warehouses and other logistics services.
Australia therefore provides the closest comparison for how the company combines port operations with the wider freight chain.
It has faced criticism from the Maritime Union of Australia and the Centre for International Corporate Tax Accountability (CICTAR) over jobs, automation and tax.
A union-backed report said DP World’s Australian wharf workforce had fallen 12% since 2014, while labour costs dropped from 54% of revenue in 2018 to 35% in 2024.
The Maritime Union of Australia estimates planned automation, including driverless vehicles moving containers between ships and storage yards, could eventually affect up to 1000 wharf and maintenance jobs across four terminals. DP World notified workers of the plans in October 2024, but no timetable for implementation or job losses has been released.
DP World said the changes were aimed at improving efficiency, lowering running costs, safety and environmental performance. It also said much of the technology was mechanical automation rather than artificial intelligence.
Tōnui has promised all current Lyttelton Port workers would be retained on no less favourable terms. It has not said how long that protection would last or whether it would cover future automation.
The same report said 2024 was the first of 11 years covered by Australian Taxation Office data in which DP World Australia recorded corporate income tax payable. The company reported A$6.9 billion in total income over that period.
It also recorded A$24.2m in management fees and A$30.2m in interest costs involving related companies in 2024. CICTAR said those payments appeared to reduce taxable income in Australia by more than A$54m.
DP World said it complied with all Australian tax rules and rejected several of CICTAR’s claims as speculative or unsupported.
An earlier Auckland bid
The company has previously sought a foothold in New Zealand’s port sector.
The company reportedly made an unsolicited $1b proposal in 2021 for a concession to operate Ports of Auckland. The approach did not proceed, although Auckland Council later considered leasing the port’s operations for up to 35 years while retaining ownership of the land.
The Maritime Union campaigned against the lease and now says it helped keep DP World out of Auckland.
The council dropped the proposal in May 2024 after the publicly owned port committed to return $1.1b in profits over the following decade.
Auckland Council said that was $172m more than the projected return from investing the proceeds of a lease. The council, port and unions instead agreed to work together while keeping the land, assets and operations in public ownership.