Lyttelton Looks To Container Terminal

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31982, 8 May 1969, Page 12

Lyttelton Looks To Container Terminal

The Lyttelton Harbour Board’s decision to complete the third berth at Cashin Quay with a view to the installation of container and bulk-handling equipment was fully justified by the Metra report to the Government on the economics of container transport for New Zealand, the chairman (Mr F. I. Sutton) told the board yesterday.

While Auckland and Wellington had been chosen as the initial terminal ports for the New Zealand-United Kingdom container service, it was pleasing to see that Lyttelton, the only port nominated in the South Island, was included with Auckland, Wellington and Whangarei in the category of ports capable of accepting large container ships by 1972, Mr Sutton said.

Mr Sutton expressed a hope that the Transport Commission, when studying the Metra consultants’ report, would consider the social and economic effects which would result if some port facilities became redundant because of changes . to the present methods Of carriage of goods by sea transport. It was important to note that in their second category —ports capable of improvement to accept large container ships but unable to be ready by 1972 the only South Island ports listed by the consultants were Bluff and Dunedin, Mr Sutton said. The report showed that there was not a large differlence in the cost of calling at

Auckland and Wellington as compared with making Wellington and Lyttelton the ports of call, Mr Sutton continued. It amounted to sl.2m a year. The cost of making the three ports terminal ports was stated as $77.1m a year, which was sl.4m greater than the Auckland-Wellington terminal. “As there is a 1 per cent allowance for error in the report, there may be only a slight additional cost per annum if Lyttelton is included as a terminal port,” he said. Important Factor An important factor to be considered was the small additional expenditure required to make Lyttelton a container port and at the same time to make provision for the speedier handling of bulk cargoes. It was estimated that an expenditure of approximately S3m would be necessary to complete Cashin Quay’s third berth and to provide the necessary equipment. Half of this expenditure could be apportioned to the provision of container facilities and the remainder for bulk-handling facilities. The report said that if container trade was handled solely at Auckland and Wellington trade between Lyttelton and the United Kingdom and Europe would decline to between 20 per cent and 50 per cent of the present trade. This could mean that Lyttelton would lose up to 80,000 tons a year.

“Except under certain circumstances it would appear from the report that the carriage of containers by rail is considered to be more economic than by sea, but it must be remembered that Lyttelton is ideally equipped for the carriage of containers by roll-on vessels,” Mr Sutton continued. “With two roll-on berths and a third under construction Lyttelton will shortly be a terminal port in four different roll-on services linking it directly with Sydney, Auckland, Wellington and Dunedin. “If all container traffic is carried by rail this would

have a detrimental effect on all ports which have undertaken costly development work, not only for the overseas trade but also for coastal trade. South Island Lagging “The South Island is already lagging behind the North in development, and if this recommendation is put into effect it would accentu--1 ate the position. Already ' some South Island ports and 1 communities dependent on r these ports have suffered by 1 changes in methods of trans- ’ porting cargoes. 1 “In the interests of New Zealand’s economy the Gov- ' ernment must ensure that ■ coastal ports are utilised for the carriage of containers and also for coastal cargoes 1 and to this end the board ■' should press for a relaxation ' of the 40-mile road limit to ■ permit containers and other ' goods to be moved over greater distances to and from the nearest port.

“If the pattern is established that containers are to be carried by rail, then other coastal cargoes could eventually be carried by this means and it would leave the South Island dependent on one railway line.”