Port of Tauranga has been aware of its Auckland rival's plans to open an inland freight hub in the Bay of Plenty for at least a year and welcomes competition, says chief executive Mark Cairns.
Ports of Auckland announced this week it would open an intermodal freight hub on 1.4ha of land in Triton Ave, Mount Maunganui, by the end of this year. The land is adjacent to a rail siding and will be developed to include a rail connection, container handling facilities and other logistics services. There was also an option to develop further capacity, the port said.
Mr Cairns said: "We can't complain about competition - we've been operating MetroPort Auckland in their backyard for 16 years. Competition is a good thing for our exporters and importers and will keep us on our toes."
Ports of Auckland has teamed with transport logistics experts Toll Group and landowner Triton Pacific to build the remaining infrastructure required at the site. Triton Pacific is controlled by local businessman Douglas Owens, a member of the Bay of Plenty Regional Council. The regional council is the major shareholder in Port of Tauranga.
Ports of Auckland chief executive Tony Gibson said Bay of Plenty exporters would now have an easy-to-access choice of ports through which they could export their goods.
