Government changes tune on Port of Newcastle container terminal

BY DAKOTA TAIT

Legislation to remove the restrictions, preventing the Port of Newcastle from becoming a container terminal, is likely to pass State Parliament on Tuesday evening. 

Lake Macquarie MP Greg Piper has reached a breakthrough with the Government, who are expected to support the bill with new amendments. 

The Treasurer will be able to appoint an independent expert to decide a fair market value for the Port's lease, if the container terminal penalties weren't included. 

The Port's private operator will be able to ignore the compensation requirements, if it covers the difference between the $1.7 billion dollars it paid in 2014, and the new amount.

t's unclear what the top-up will amount to, but it could be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

Newcastle Container Terminal Hopes Quashed by Federal Court Call

BY DAKOTA TAIT

A Federal Court decision which quashed the possibility of a container terminal at the Port of Newcastle is being met with backlash.

The port has been pushing to diversify into freight and establish a larger terminal on the former BHP site at Mayfield for years, but is currently limited by laws which restrict container movements and make the project financially unfeasible. 

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is now deciding whether to proceed with an appeal against the call, after their claims the restrictions were anti-competitive and only put in place to favour Port Kembla and Port Botany, were rejected.

Newcastle MP Sharon Claydon said the Government needed to step in for the sake of the Hunter economy and its sustainability into the future.

"It is outrageous that the NSW Government has subjected us to a dodgy deal they made in order to sell and privatize the ports in NSW," Ms Claydon said. 

"It's effectively a massive constraint on Newcastle." 

The court also rejected arguments the Government lost Crown immunity from anti-competitive practice in privatizing the ports, stating the Government was not acting as a business, but only in the interest of a policy decision. 

"All pressure should be put to the NSW Liberal Government," Ms Claydon said. "This is a problem of their making, and the solution also lies with them."

"Why should we be penalised and not be in a position to develop and grow this port, help create jobs in our region, and continue to drive great economic activity in Newcastle?"

Image credit: https://www.portofnewcastle.com.au/

Maritime Authority Launches New Campaign to Help Prevent Shipping Disasters and Cargo Losses

BY DAKOTA TAIT

Container ships visiting the Port of Newcastle may now face extra scrutiny as part of a new nationwide campaign initiated by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) to enforce proper cargo securing arrangements and prevent shipping disasters.

While the campaign is ongoing from early August to the end of October, cargo ships should expect extended Port State Control inspections or stand-alone inspections if they dock in Australian ports.

The inspection campaign is being launched in response to recent investigations which revealed issues such as unsafe stacking practices and the poor maintenance of securing equipment were major factors in incidents involving the loss of containers from the YM Efficiency off Newcastle in 2018 and the APL England off Wollongong in May.

AMSA Acting National Operations Manager, Greg Witherall says the recent incidents were "simply unacceptable".

"They have the impact to cause significant environmental damage to Australia's iconic marine and coastal environment," Mr Witherall said. "These events, of containers going over the side, certainly affects the livelihoods and safety of commercial fishers and more broadly communities across Australia."

A $17 million recovery effort earlier this year salvaged 63 of the 81 containers lost overboard from the YM Efficiency, which had left debris such as nappies, surgical masks, and other sanitary products to wash up on local shores.

Taiwanese operator Yang Ming are now facing legal proceedings from AMSA in the Federal Court to recover the costs of the container removal effort.

Mr Witherall said further incidents would not be tolerated and all vessels visiting Australia must ensure they comply with the international standards set out by the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Convention.

"Where a vessel is deemed not compliant, and what we call clear grounds exist, then the AMSA inspector may proceed to a full detailed inspection," Mr Witherall said. "That can result in compliance action being taken until the vessel and the operators bring their vessel back into compliance."

"There's certainly an opportunity here for industry to lift its standards and AMSA will hold companies to account if their ships lose containers in Australian waters."

Image credit: https://www.amsa.gov.au/

Labor Promises Judicial Probe into Port Deal

BY LAUREN FREEMANTLE

As the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission prepares to launch legal action against NSW Ports for a so-called 'anti-competitive' deal surrounding the Port of Newcastle, State Labor is looking to probe the matter further.

Opposition leader Michael Daley is committing to a full judicial inquiry into the Baird era deal, which essentially stops a container terminal being built in Newcastle for the next 50 years to the detriment of Ports Kembla and Botany.

The inquiry will examine the Liberal-National Government's role in the privatisation agreement, amid claims the container terminal ban is stifling the Hunter of jobs and investment.

The opposition has already announced a judicial inquiry into Sydney's delayed light rail project and the WestConnex motorway scheme.

In a statement issued on Monday, ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said while the NSW Government is not currently party to the Federal Court suit, he's long voiced concerns about the short-term thinking of state governments privatising assets.

The ACCC will try to prove the Ports' 2013 and 2014 deeds privatising Kembla, Botany and Newcastle contravene the Competition and Consumer Act.

Michael Daley said he's calling on the State Government to own up to their part.

"The ACCC doesn't have the power to institute proceedings against the Crown, but that doesn't mean the Government can't be a party to the proceedings if it chooses to be. If it's good enough for the Premier to send the Treasurer out to defend the deal, the Premier should send the Solicitor General down to the Federal Court and seek to be joined to these proceedings," Mr Daley said. 

Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the Government's position has not changed since 2013, saying no competition issues have arisen as a result of the "arrangement which provided certainty to all parties involved." 

Mr Perrottet said the Government is fully cooperating with the ACCC on the ongoing matter. 

Image: Hunter Business Review.