Oceania

The Queensland government has decided there will be no new ports created for the next ten years.

The Western Australian Government is being sued for over A$1bn (US$1.03bn) by building entrepreneur Len Buckeridge over a stalled port project.

Japanese company Mitsubishi has indefinitely mothballed a plan to develop an iron ore port and rail link at Oakajee in Western Australia.

Doubts have been cast on the viability of having three container stevedores compete at the Port of Brisbane.

PrimePort Timaru has been able to save the jobs of ten staff following it being added to the Capricorn schedule of Mediterranean Shipping Company.

A 27-tonne container of avocados fell seven metres onto the ANL Benalla in one of two recent container crane malfunctions at the Port of Tauranga.

Price regulation of essential services in South Australian ports is to continue for another five years to October 2017.

Despite the unsettling effects of a rift with its political masters, the Queensland port of Gladstone has reported a major lift in profitability.

Asciano Patrick has had to impose temporary reduced operational capacity at its Port Botany terminal in October because of employee absenteeism, delays in the arrival of new equipment and bad weather interruptions.

Newly-formed trade union, PortPro, has signed a collective employment agreement with the Ports of Auckland.

There is a loss of jobs at Timaru Primeport due to a lack of national port strategy, according to the Rail and Maritime Transport Union (RMTU).

The Australian port of Portland has won its challenge against the Victorian government for the amount of land tax that was payable at the time the port was privatised in the mid-1990s.

Major stakeholders in New Zealand’s supply chain appear united in their support for maintaining two major upper North Island ports to handle the country’s international freight needs.

The opposition political coalition in Australia is concerned about monopolies dominating Australia’s ports structure.

Western Victoria has opened a major freight terminal to ease congestion at the state’s ports.

New Zealand ratepayer-owned ports are expected to soon become subject to the Official Information Act following Labour MP Darien Fenton’s Local Government (Council Controlled Organisations) Amendment Bill being drawn from the ballot.

PrimePort Timaru chief executive Jeremy Boys has advised staff there will be 29 redundancies as a consequence of the port having recently lost its container trade.

Green Party transport spokesperson Julie Anne Genter says the Government needs to develop a national ports strategy so ports, which are majority or wholly-owned by local bodies, stop under-cutting each other.