Rail the ticket to Auckland port's future

By GEORGINA BOND

Ports of Auckland plans to run a rail shuttle service to link its wharves on the Waitemata Harbour to its new inland port development at Wiri as it battles competition with Port of Tauranga's MetroPort.

Chief executive Geoff Vazey told shareholders at the company's annual meeting in Auckland yesterday the port had agreed to the service with Toll New Zealand.

It would boost capacity, reduce delays in the delivery of imports and lessen future demand on roads.

Vazey said it was one of several company projects to ensure the port had good rail options for customers.

"Ports of Auckland has a state-of-the-art rail exchange that has capacity to handle much more rail traffic."

Toll NZ chief executive David Jackson said in a separate statement: "This is typical of the development we envisaged for our rail business and we look forward to getting under way with not only the Wiri project but with other opportunities with Ports of Auckland as they arise."

Auckland, which handles about half of all the containers shipped to and from New Zealand, has been losing share of the container market to Tauranga, which opened its inland container terminal MetroPort in South Auckland in 1999.

Since then, MetroPort has grown into the country's third-largest container port in its own right, largely at Auckland's expense.

Vazey said the Wiri site was due to open in the middle of next year.

Auckland, which handled 662,170 20-ft containers in the June year, could lift its capacity to three million containers a year by reclaiming land to make space for containers, improved stacking and building more terminals such as Wiri.

Terminal capacity would be lifted by 100,000 TEUs (20ft equivalent units) when stage one of the Axis Fergusson extension opened in 2006.

Chairman Neville Darrow said the company was "trading soundly" and on track for steady growth.

He said first-quarter container volumes fell 2 per cent from the year earlier after a four-day strike and other disruptions.

"After the first three months of the new financial year, the company is trading to expectation.

"Earnings before interest and tax, taking into account that the marina business has been sold, are at a level similar to last year, not withstanding the recent four-day strike and the loss of a shipping service.

"Net profit after tax including unusual items is slightly up."