News
'Paralysed' Port of Melbourne risks slipping
Ben Potter
415 words
12 August 2016
The Australian Financial Review
AFNR
First
12
English
Copyright 2016. Fairfax Media Management Pty Limited.
Melbourne's Philippines-owned third stevedore says the city's port is at risk of falling behind rival Sydney and Melbourne ports because decision-making is "paralysed" by the port sale.
Victorian International Container Terminals chief executive Anders Dømmestrup has written to Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas urging him to fast-track decisions on expansion plans at VICT's Webb Dock facilities that the company says it needs to compete with incumbent stevedores.
VICT is already committed to spending $550 million on automated container handling and transport at Webb Dock, but pays a much higher rent than incumbent stevedores DP World and Patrick, owned by Asciano.
Mr Dømmestrup says VICT needs a green light for its plans to spend another $175 million on world-leading technology to increase Webb Dock's capacity and efficiency and bridge the competitive gap, but has been given the run-around for 12 months.
"The approach we have encountered from PoMC suggests the aim of leasing the port is to maximise returns to the state's revenue at the expense of consumers, businesses and VICT," he said.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims said two weeks ago attempts to maximise sale proceeds by restricting competition were turning him against privatisation. The ACCC said on Thursday it would not object to bids by consortiums led by the Future Fund and Queensland Investment Corp, and by IFM Investors and Macquarie Group, which had links to rival container ports in Sydney and Brisbane.
The sale of a 50-year lease on the Port of Melbourne, Australia's biggest container port, is expected to yield about $6 billion for the Victorian government when it is finalised later this year.
"The best thing for the government is to make these decisions rather than hand it over to a new owner and say, 'it's your problem'," Mr Dømmestrup told The Australian Financial Review.
"After 12 months of trying to constructively engage with them, we need to get it to the surface and we think there is good room for Treasurer Tim Pallas to step forward and say, 'this makes sense'."
Among VICT's complaints is that Transurban's $5.5 billion Western Distributor road project will serve Swanson Dock, enabling DP World and Patrick to be served by 110-tonne 'Super Double B' trucks, but not Webb Dock, and the Port is sitting on VICT proposals for larger ships to be allowed at Webb Dock.
Business
Port in a storm
John Dagge
JOHN DAGGE
524 words
12 August 2016
Herald-Sun
HERSUN
HeraldSun
53
English
? 2016 News Limited. All rights reserved.
LOGISTICS VICTORIA'S newest stevedore says it is competing on an uneven playing field and the state treasurer needs to intervene and approve changes it wants at the Port of Melbourne.
Victoria International Container Terminal says a rent deal struck between a key competitor and the government-owned Port of Melbourne Corporation, as well as the proposed Western Distributor project, leaves it at a significant disadvantage.
The group — which is paying up to 750 per cent more in rent than its competitors — also says changes it wants at its Webb Dock facility to rebalance competition and increase capacity have been paralysed by the drawn-out sale process for the port.
It has written to Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas calling on him to end its standoff with the Port of Melbourne Corporation.
"The government can't just take a hands-off approach to this," VICT chief executive Anders Dommestrup told Business Daily.
The appeal comes as the government nears the pointy end of the port's $6 billion sale.
The competition watchdog yesterday gave two consortiums the green light to proceed with their bids to lease Australia's biggest container port for the next 50 years.
Owned by Filipino stevedore International Container Terminal Services, VICT is spending more than $500 million building a third container terminal at the Port of Melbourne.
It won a public tender to develop Webb Dock in 2014, agreeing to pay much higher rents than existing operators.
Port of Melbourne Corporation then attempted to increase the rents payable by rivals DP World and Patrick — rises that would have increased the port's sale price — but relented after a furious backlash.
VICT says the proposed Western Distributor would also give fully laden trucks access to rival facilities at Swanson Dock, while load limits applied to Webb Dock.
In response, the company is pushing to be able to process larger ships and have the port manager remove a disused berth that limits its waterfrontage, allowing it to unload two ships at the same time rather than one. It also wants to hand back the lease on an area of land slated to store empty containers.
The company says it has come up with an operating plan that means the space is no longer needed and cuts down on truck movements.
Mr Dommestrup said the changes would allow the company to provide more robust competition and boost the port's capacity by up to 25 per cent, leading to a better sale price.
"It's a win for everyone but it's being blocked up by a bureaucratic process around the port sale," he said.
The government — not a new private owner — should deal with the issues as they related to a piece of infrastructure that supported the entire economy, Mr Dommestrup said.
Port of Melbourne Corporation chief Nick Easy said VICT had won the right to develop Webb Dock after a fair tender process and the corporation expected the delivery of the agreed scope of works.
The treasurer's office did not respond to an interview request from Business Daily.john.dagge@news.com.au
Business
Sydney could top Melbourne as ships capital, warns stevedore
Mark Hawthorne
532 words
12 August 2016
The Sydney Morning Herald
SMHH
First
23
English
? 2016 Copyright John Fairfax Holdings Limited. www.smh.com.au
Trade
The company building the new international container terminal at Melbourne's Webb Dock has taken aim at the state government and Port of Melbourne Corporation, claiming it has been told to "sit down and shut up" over its safety and productivity concerns while the Andrews government undertakes its sale of a 50-year lease of the country's biggest port.
On Wednesday, Victorian International Container Terminal chief executive Anders Dommestrup wrote to Treasurer Tim Pallas to voice concerns, warning Sydney was on the road to usurping Melbourne due to a lack of "sensible operational planning" at PoMC.
VICT is wholly owned by Philippines-based shipping giant ICTSI. In 2014, it won the right to operate Webb Dock until 2040, but at much higher rental rates than its rivals. PoMC tried to extract a 750 per cent rent increase from Patrick and DP World, before backing down.
Speaking with Fairfax Media, Mr Dommestrup said the new Western Distributor project, coupled with a sweetheart rent deal for rival DP World, had handed its rivals at Swanston Dock an unfair advantage.
"The Western Distributor plan hands our competitors a significant competitive advantage," he said. "All we are asking for is an even playing field, and access for fully laden large trucks from Webb Dock."
Mr Dommestrup added: "We signed a contract and we will honour that, but the playing field has been changed on us, I thought we could at least have a conversation with the government and with the Port of Melbourne over that. The PoMC tells us to speak with the government.
"We are trying to build a port that will play a significant role in the future of this state, we have concerns over some safety and productivity aspects, and we are continuously being blocked or sent in circles. It is a complete paralysis."
In his letter to the Treasurer, Mr Dommestrup highlights several alleged PoMC failures. These include:
¦ Not allowing VICT to remove an old, disused concrete outcrop that is a safety hazard and also prevents larger ships from accessing the port.
¦Refusing to engage in any discussion over VICT's desire to hand back a 10-hectare area designated as a container park.
¦Refusing to engage in any discussion to allow large trucks to access the Western Distributor from Webb Doc.
¦Fast-tracking an assessment of allowing large vessels to berth at Webb Dock.
"Every time we try to speak with the PoMC, we are told they can't do anything while the sale process is under way," Mr Dommestrup said."Instead we have been told to go away and comply with our contractual obligations, basically to sit down and shut up."
The stinging criticism comes as the competition watchdog gives the green light to two separate proposals by consortiums to acquire the 50-year lease of the Port of Melbourne.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission reviewed proposals from the IFM Consortium and QIC Consortium proposals, examining the cross-ownership interests in Port of Melbourne, NSW Ports, and Port of Brisbane.
A spokesman for Mr Pallas declined to comment, and PoMC did not respond before deadline.
Business
Sydney could top Melbourne as ships capital, warns stevedore
Mark Hawthorne
532 words
12 August 2016
The Age
AGEE
First
21
English
? 2016 Copyright John Fairfax Holdings Limited. www.theage.com.au
Trade
The company building the new international container terminal at Melbourne's Webb Dock has taken aim at the state government and Port of Melbourne Corporation, claiming it has been told to "sit down and shut up" over its safety and productivity concerns while the Andrews government undertakes its sale of a 50-year lease of the country's biggest port.
On Wednesday, Victorian International Container Terminal chief executive Anders Dommestrup wrote to Treasurer Tim Pallas to voice concerns, warning Sydney was on the road to usurping Melbourne due to a lack of "sensible operational planning" at PoMC.
VICT is wholly owned by Philippines-based shipping giant ICTSI. In 2014, it won the right to operate Webb Dock until 2040, but at much higher rental rates than its rivals. PoMC tried to extract a 750 per cent rent increase from Patrick and DP World, before backing down.
Speaking with Fairfax Media, Mr Dommestrup said the new Western Distributor project, coupled with a sweetheart rent deal for rival DP World, had handed its rivals at Swanston Dock an unfair advantage.
"The Western Distributor plan hands our competitors a significant competitive advantage," he said. "All we are asking for is an even playing field, and access for fully laden large trucks from Webb Dock."
Mr Dommestrup added: "We signed a contract and we will honour that, but the playing field has been changed on us, I thought we could at least have a conversation with the government and with the Port of Melbourne over that. The PoMC tells us to speak with the government.
"We are trying to build a port that will play a significant role in the future of this state, we have concerns over some safety and productivity aspects, and we are continuously being blocked or sent in circles. It is a complete paralysis."
In his letter to the Treasurer, Mr Dommestrup highlights several alleged PoMC failures. These include:
¦ Not allowing VICT to remove an old, disused concrete outcrop that is a safety hazard and also prevents larger ships from accessing the port.
¦Refusing to engage in any discussion over VICT's desire to hand back a 10-hectare area designated as a container park.
¦Refusing to engage in any discussion to allow large trucks to access the Western Distributor from Webb Doc.
¦Fast-tracking an assessment of allowing large vessels to berth at Webb Dock.
"Every time we try to speak with the PoMC, we are told they can't do anything while the sale process is under way," Mr Dommestrup said."Instead we have been told to go away and comply with our contractual obligations, basically to sit down and shut up."
The stinging criticism comes as the competition watchdog gives the green light to two separate proposals by consortiums to acquire the 50-year lease of the Port of Melbourne.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission reviewed proposals from the IFM Consortium and QIC Consortium proposals, examining the cross-ownership interests in Port of Melbourne, NSW Ports, and Port of Brisbane.
A spokesman for Mr Pallas declined to comment, and PoMC did not respond before deadline.
Warning that Sydney could top Melbourne as ships capital
TradeMark Hawthorne
554 words
12 August 2016
Canberra Times
CANBTZ
A036
English
(c) 2016 The Canberra Times
Warning that Sydney could top Melbourne as ships capital
Trade Mark Hawthorne
Victorian International Container Terminal chief executive Anders Dommestrup.
The company building the new international container terminal at Melbourne's Webb Dock has taken aim at the state government and Port of Melbourne Corporation, claiming it has been told to "sit down and shut up" over its safety and productivity concerns while the Andrews government undertakes its sale of a 50-year lease of the country's biggest port. On Wednesday, Victorian International Container Terminal chief executive Anders Dommestrup wrote to Treasurer Tim Pallas to voice concerns, warning Sydney was on the road to usurping Melbourne due to a lack of "sensible operational planning" at PoMC. VICT is wholly owned by Philippines-based shipping giant
ICTSI. In 2014, it won the right to operate Webb Dock until 2040, but at much higher rental rates than its rivals. PoMC tried to extract a 750per cent rent increase from Patrick and DP World, before backing down. Speaking with Fairfax Media, Mr Dommestrup said the new Western Distributor project, coupled with a sweetheart rent deal for rival DP World, had handed its rivals at Swanston Dock an unfair advantage. "The Western Distributor plan hands our competitors a significant competitive advantage," he said. "All we are asking for is an even playing field, and access for fully laden large trucks from Webb Dock." Mr Dommestrup added: "We signed a contract and we will honour that, but the playing field has
been changed on us, I thought we could at least have a conversation with the government and with the Port of Melbourne over that. The PoMC tells us to speak with the government. "We are trying to build a port that will play a significant role in the future of this state, we have
concerns over some safety and productivity aspects, and we are continuously being blocked or sent in circles. It is a complete paralysis." In his letter to the Treasurer, Mr Dommestrup highlights several alleged PoMC failures. These include: + Not allowing VICT to remove an old, disused concrete outcrop that is a safety hazard and also prevents larger ships from accessing the port. +Refusing to engage in any discussion over VICT's desire to hand back a 10-hectare area designated as a container park. +Refusing to engage in any discussion to allow large trucks to access the Western Distributor from Webb Doc. +Fast-tracking an assessment of allowing large vessels to berth at Webb Dock.
"Every time we try to speak with the PoMC, we are told they can't do anything while the sale process is under way," Mr Dommestrup said."Instead we have been told to go away and comply with our contractual obligations, basically to sit down and shut up." The stinging criticism comes as the competition watchdog gives the green light to two separate proposals by consortiums to acquire the 50-year lease of the Port of Melbourne. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission reviewed proposals from the IFM Consortium and QIC Consortium proposals, examining the cross-ownership interests in Port of Melbourne, NSW Ports, and Port of Brisbane. A spokesman for Mr Pallas declined to comment, and PoMC did not respond before deadline.