Ports of Auckland has seen a negative impact on half year results due to construction and capacity issues.
Total revenue is up 2.5% to $123.6 million for the six months to December 31.
Net profit after tax is down 16.4% to $24.4m. This compares to $29.2m for the same period the previous year.
Dividends are down to $18.6m compared to $23.8m the previous year.
Capital expenditure is up to $89.8m compared to $70.6m the previous year. This was a result of investment in capacity growth such as automation and new cranes at the new Waitemata sea port, plus a new road bridge and the first customer facility at the Waikato Freight Hub.
Operating costs have increased due to lower volumes and productivity being impacted by work on the automation project.
Container volume (TEU) of 485,093 is down 4.6% compared to 508,262 in the same period the previous year.
Total general cargo volume of 3.2m tonnes is down 4.7% compared to 3.4m tonnes in the previous period.
Car volume of 124,190 units is down 16.6% from 148,879 units in the previous period. This was a result of a decline in car sales plus the impact of measures to prevent the introduction of the brown marmorated stink bug.
Ports of Auckland chief executive Tony Gibson says it’s been a tough period for the organisation.
“Our company is in the middle of a major investment programme which will increase capacity, efficiency and returns. This work will give us a solid foundation for a sustainable future, but while construction is underway there is a tangible effect on our business. A number of these factors have combined to make the first half of this financial year difficult for Ports of Auckland,” he says.
“The entire period has been clouded by the death of one of our colleagues in a straddle accident at the container terminal in August 2018. The accident was a terrible tragedy for a young man and his family, and has impacted on all of us here at the port.
“In combination with a number of other factors, the accident also had a significant impact on our operations. The terminal is currently operating with less capacity as a result of work to introduce automation, which has limited our ability to respond to unexpected increases in demand or the terminal closure following the accident. As a result, we experienced severe congestion in September and October, and had to divert a few services to other ports.
“While this congestion is now behind us, we will continue to operate with reduced terminal capacity until automation infrastructure works are completed later in 2019,” Gibson says.
Ports of Auckland is also working with the National Road Carriers Association to update its processes and improve supply chain operations across the board.
