Happening for truck and rail deliveries or just truck?

The Port of Melbourne is now one of the most expensive sites for DP World customers in Australia, with container charges at least $20 higher than their Brisbane and Sydney locations.

Wait for the business to go to Adelaide and Sydney.

Port of Melbourne container charge increase could have flow-on effects for consumers and farmers

Hello All,

well the NFF / National Farmers Federation pushed hard for Port privatisation , which generally ended up being owned by foreign entities , and one result is continuing higher charges, who would have thought ?

Regards, Radioman.

Yet another case where the government sold its right and ability to govern for the greater good of the general population.

Yet another case where the government sold its right and ability to govern for the greater good of the general population.

But as Radioman has rightly pointed out, influential sections of the population were in favour of it.

You can't just blame the government. You wan't all the benefits of a capitalist system until things don't go your way.

But as Radioman has rightly pointed out, influential sections of the population were in favour of it. You can't just blame the government. You wan't all the benefits of a capitalist system until things don't go your way.

I think what YM was getting at was that the government should have more foresight than to listen to myopic rhetoric from groups like the NFF. Obviously the NFF are always going to want things to go their way; that's their role.

Hello All,

well the NFF / National Farmers Federation pushed hard for Port privatisation , which generally ended up being owned by foreign entities , and one result is continuing higher charges, who would have thought ?

Regards, Radioman.

What did the NFF thing they would get out of the privatisation?  We have nothing more than higher prices.

Yet another case where the government sold its right and ability to govern for the greater good of the general population.

But as Radioman has rightly pointed out, influential sections of the population were in favour of it.

You can't just blame the government. You wan't all the benefits of a capitalist system until things don't go your way.

The key words being 'influential sections of the population were in favour of it'. If you don't have 'influence' (meaning money or the negatives) you just don't count.
All I want is good, honest, far seeing, balanced, competent and fair government.
Sadly we have got little of the above. Big (often foreign) business is running the place - you only have to look at the banks, oil companies, power and gas suppliers, transport and now the Ports.

Hello All,

well the NFF / National Farmers Federation pushed hard for Port privatisation , which generally ended up being owned by foreign entities , and one result is continuing higher charges, who would have thought ?

Regards, Radioman.

What did the NFF thing they would get out of the privatisation?  We have nothing more than higher prices.

the NFF think ? - there is no evidence of that

It's the same reason as always, "bust the unions". They have never forgiven the shearers for going on strike.

The inconvenient fact being - militant unionism and port ownership have nothing to do with each other.
And anyway militant unionism got squashed by Patricks years ago.

Doesn't stop the NFF living in the past, and demand a solution to last century's problems.

Next step to "solve" this new mess, go back to step 1 - Capitalise the Profits and Socialise the Losses.
A new farmers tax rebate for freight/port charges -250% sounds fair as long as can cash it out.

cheers
John

That being answered what is the impact of the price hikes on the likely traffic as we have seen traffic on rail diverted from Melbourne (Qube) already and would we expect more as more and more rail traffic goes onto SG and is therefore able to access other ports.

Victoria needs another container port for competition.

Hello All,

despite comments to the contrary, Westernport is not a deep port, but a deep entrance to a shallow port, hence the need for dredging. Victoria's only deep water port is Portland, which is all rather small, and with due respect to the residents of Portland, in the middle of nowhere.

Port Phillip has probably reached the limit of dredging without doing catastrophic damage to the Bay foreshore , as the last deepening, small though it was, has effectively destroyed beaches around Portsea , and is having an evident ongoing detrimental effect further up the Peninsula, despite claims to the contrary by the Victorian Channels Authority / VCA ( as successor the Port of Melbourne Authority ).

Also the current Melbourne Container berths are not working at full capacity , which may be a contributing factor to the price hikes.

This also raises the issue of how big can container ships really go. It should be pointed out that currently only Hamburg, Rotterdam and Felixstowe in Europe can take the largest container ships , while Melbourne still cannot easily handle 10,000 TEU ( Twenty foot Equivalent Units ) container ships , as Melbourne is limited to 7,500 TEU, 93,511 Gross tonnage.  ( There are both geological and structural limitations effecting Melbourne Port. )

Sydney , Brisbane and Adelaide can all potentially handle the new generation 10,000 TEU ships. As container ships are likely only going to get ever larger . It is therefore quite possible we are now witnessing the decline of Melbourne as the largest container port by volume in Australia .

( The world's largest container ships currently are the Orient Overseas Container Line's "OOCL Hong Kong" class of 6 vessels, at 21,413 TEU, 399.2 metres long, 210,890 Gross tonnes , built 2017, Samsung Heavy Industries , Hong Kong flag. )

Practical restriction on container ship size is also an influence on the increased interest in long distance transcontinental freight railways from China , overland to the west.

As an aside, most of Britain's traditional import docks have closed down due to the geological constraints of enlarging them. Of the remaining traditional UK ports that remain open, their ship size is significantly below the now typical 7,500 TEU container ships.

Regards, Radioman.

I am surprised that Adelaide has not featured more in traffic off the Mildura line given the government mandated stuffing around at Ararat to get to Melbourne and/or Portland.

I am surprised that Adelaide has not featured more in traffic off the Mildura line given the government mandated stuffing around at Ararat to get to Melbourne and/or Portland.

In the logistics timeline of  getting a container from Mildura to the other side of the world, the extra time running via Maryborough and Ararat is the equivalent of a pimple on the bum.

And while Adelaide is a reasonably busy port, your chances of getting on the right ship to take your container to where you want it to be, are much less than in Melbourne. I'd blame the government for that as well

I am surprised that Adelaide has not featured more in traffic off the Mildura line given the government mandated stuffing around at Ararat to get to Melbourne and/or Portland.

With the increase in Port Charges the extra distance (well not really if via Ouyen and Pinaroo) may look cheaper?

Hello All,

despite comments to the contrary, Westernport is not a deep port, but a deep entrance to a shallow port, hence the need for dredging. Victoria's only deep water port is Portland, which is all rather small, and with due respect to the residents of Portland, in the middle of nowhere.

Port Phillip has probably reached the limit of dredging without doing catastrophic damage to the Bay foreshore , as the last deepening, small though it was, has effectively destroyed beaches around Portsea , and is having an evident ongoing detrimental effect further up the Peninsula, despite claims to the contrary by the Victorian Channels Authority / VCA ( as successor the Port of Melbourne Authority ).

Also the current Melbourne Container berths are not working at full capacity , which may be a contributing factor to the price hikes.

This also raises the issue of how big can container ships really go. It should be pointed out that currently only Hamburg, Rotterdam and Felixstowe in Europe can take the largest container ships , while Melbourne still cannot easily handle 10,000 TEU ( Twenty foot Equivalent Units ) container ships , as Melbourne is limited to 7,500 TEU, 93,511 Gross tonnage.  ( There are both geological and structural limitations effecting Melbourne Port. )

Sydney , Brisbane and Adelaide can all potentially handle the new generation 10,000 TEU ships. As container ships are likely only going to get ever larger . It is therefore quite possible we are now witnessing the decline of Melbourne as the largest container port by volume in Australia .

( The world's largest container ships currently are the Orient Overseas Container Line's "OOCL Hong Kong" class of 6 vessels, at 21,413 TEU, 399.2 metres long, 210,890 Gross tonnes , built 2017, Samsung Heavy Industries , Hong Kong flag. )

Practical restriction on container ship size is also an influence on the increased interest in long distance transcontinental freight railways from China , overland to the west.

As an aside, most of Britain's traditional import docks have closed down due to the geological constraints of enlarging them. Of the remaining traditional UK ports that remain open, their ship size is significantly below the now typical 7,500 TEU container ships.

Regards, Radioman.

Even the Townsville Port and approach channels are currently being upgraded to handle 8,500 TEU ships - if Melbourne can't match the price or capacity of other nearby or potentially competing ports it will be the beginning of the end for it, a situation that has been repeated thousands of times throughout history. Around the Pacific Rim international shippers are focusing on ports with the shortest shipping times and shortest shipping routes from Asia to reduce costs and improve the turnarounds for their ships.