Port Nelson Annual Report 2012 (pdf)

chief executive officer’s report
The financial year just ended has been a further challenging 12 months
for us, on the back of a drop-off in some cargo volumes, continuing
reviews of shipping services and the ongoing financial challenges
faced in many markets served by exporters from the region.
On the cargo side, log volumes for the year were around 636,000
tonnes, well down on the 723,000 handled in the previous year and
even further below the expected budget. The softening of the Chinese
market in particular has been very apparent to exporters in the Nelson-
Tasman area, and it appears the current volumes are likely to be the
reality for some time to come.
Apple volumes were also lower than the previous year, due to a
combination of a smaller crop and fruit being later this year following
a cooler-than-usual summer. On a more positive note, at the time
of preparing this report, pipfruit prices in major overseas markets
seemed to be more robust than in recent years, which is a positive for
the horticultural industry.
Fish volumes have also held up well this year after a good hoki season,
and it is hoped, with continued good catches and the addressing of
some storage issues for diesel supplies on the reclamation that fish
volumes will continue to grow in the coming years.
Processed wood volumes were in line with expectations, wine volumes
remained strong and fertiliser and gypsum imports were also at
pleasing levels.
On the container side, while the figures for the year were slightly below
budget, at 86,178 TEU, this was the highest number of containers
handled annually through the port to date.
Vessel visits, at 733, were well down on the previous year’s total of
850. This was partly due to the withdrawal of Strait Shipping’s weekly
Nelson-to-Wellington service in June 2011, and the absence of extra
loader vessels calling during the export fruit season this year.
As mentioned in the Directors’ Report on the previous page, the
decision of Maersk to review their Nelson weekly service caused
considerable consternation in the export community during the
month of June. While the final result of Nelson receiving a regular
call on the NZ1 service was a positive one, the decision of Maersk to
withdraw their Timaru service further emphasised the continual state
of change prevalent in the industry.
We firmly believe that the wide and varied cargo base available for
shipping lines in this region is a major point of difference from some
other regional ports, and is one that the lines themselves acknowledge.
The continuining increase in container vessel sizes is of ongoing
concern to us, given the physical limitations of Port Nelson and the
unrealistic cost of deepening beyond our present limitations. That
having been said, we remain firmly of the opinion that cargo moving
over our wharves, whether by the use of feeder or direct services, and
probably a combination of both, is the logical means for the bulk of
Nelson export cargo to make its way to overseas destinations.
see Gary Rae from Incite Ltd and Nelson City Council jointly win the
New Zealand Planning Institute Award for the implementation of the
Port Noise Variation. While not a direct recipient of the award itself,
PNL staff undertook much of the work that went on behind the scenes
to make the Variation workable, and it was very satisfying to see this
recognised at a national level.
Noise complaints for the year were down to eight, which remains
encouraging, and is a testament both to the efforts of our staff and also
to the ongoing assistance and understanding of Port Hills’ residents,
including the representatives on the Noise Liaison Committee.
We take this opportunity to thank the members of the Environmental
Consultative Committee for their ongoing work as well.
In the wider community, earlier this year, we commenced monthly
visits to the port from school groups and community groups such as
Probus and Rotary Clubs. This programme has proven very popular and
we currently have bookings right through until the end of this year. In
the past, we have run open days every three to four years, but this new
initiative gives us an additional regular opportunity to interact with a
wide range of people and to show them exactly what goes on within
our port confines. Feedback to date has been tremendous.
Internally, much of our focus at present is around what we term our
Journey to Excellence (J2E) which has a major emphasis on reducing
wastage and increasing efficiency and productivity through utilising
the ideas of our people. Part of this wider process has been working
through our Vision, which is based around the six pillars of our
business, which are people, processes, customers, financial results,
the community and the environment. These are tied into our Purpose,
which we clearly see as being to help facilitate regional prosperity.
Clearly, in the current economic climate, achieving that is challenging,
but I am convinced that we have the people within our organisation to
drive the business forward.
In closing, I would like to once again express my thanks to our Board
of Directors for their support over the last 12 months, and my sincere
appreciation to our staff without whom this business would not
function. I would also like to thank the importers and exporters of
Nelson-Tasman and Marlborough who put cargo over our wharves and
support us through many challenges such as the Maersk service review
mentioned above. That process proved the influence that all of us can
have when working together as a cohesive unit. We wish you all the
best for a successful 2012/13.
Martin Byrne
Chief Executive Officer, Port Nelson Limited.
The last year has seen us make further positive steps in continuing to
enhance our environmental credentials within the region and in the
wider port industry. Recertification of our ISO 14001 management
system was a positive sign that we continue to perform well
environmentally, and an endorsement of the work undertaken by our
Environmental Officer Thomas Marchant. It was also very pleasing to
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