Despite container throughput being down 23%, cargo handling down 3% and conventional cargo volumes down 10%, Port Otago increased its profit from $9.4 million last year to $12.6 million, largely on the back of a $7 million swing in property revaluations, according to its financial report for the year to June.
Port Otago chairman Dave Faulkner yesterday told regional councillors container handling "productivity and cargo care" were the two elements to maintaining a competitive edge in port operations.
"These are the key elements to ensure that cargo from the hinterlands continues to cross our wharves," he said.
For the quarter to June, Port Otago lifted its container handling productivity rates about 20%, from an average 27.5 an hour to 33, ahead of Wellington in second place and Tauranga in third, on the back of better shipping schedules and equipment use, Mr Faulkner said.
Tauranga, which moved more than 796,000 containers last year, was expected to reclaim first place within the group of six ports, but he was confident Port Otago would remain in the top three after moving up from fifth.
The global decline in container trade because of the European debt crisis had not been replicated in South Island container trade, with a short-term increase in trade expected, he said.
In the long term, Port Otago was finalising channel deepening and sand disposal resource consents and faced a challenge in the Environment Court next month.
Once the work was done, the port would be prepared for the "inevitable" arrival of larger shipping, he said.
Port Otago's financial result was heavily influenced by the result of its subsidiary, Chalmers Properties Ltd, which last year booked unrealised property devaluations of a $5.1 million loss. This year it had a $7 million swing in revaluations to produce a $2.36 million gain.
Container handling at Port Chalmers was down 23%, or 49,000 containers, from 221,000 to 172,000 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units).
Earlier reports that Maersk's withdrawal of tranship containers (mainly empty for redistribution) out of Port Chalmers would equate to 22,000 TEUs were inaccurate, as they were counted twice, in off-loading and reloading, with the balance lost from not repairing and delivering other containers, he said.
Conventional cargo volumes were down 10%, mainly in a falling log market and a decline in fertiliser use, while cargo handling volumes were down 3% to 3.5 million tonnes, prompting a 5% decline in revenue to $70.1 million.
Mr Faulkner estimated Port Chalmers could gain as many as 10,000 containers after Maersk and Hamburg Sud withdrew from Timaru on September 17.
Last year's dividend was $12.5 million (special component $5.25 million and $7 million ordinary), while this year's was $11.75 million (special $4.75 million, ordinary $7 million) - bringing the total in dividends during the past 23 years to $114.85 million.
"We have expectations [for delivering] another special dividend next year," he told councillors.
