New line has Belgian backing

Press, 5 December 1978, Page 6

New line has Belgian backing

Lyttelton’s participation in a new' SI2SM non-Conference < shipping service to New Zea- 1 land commitment is ex- 1 pected to depend on Govern- i ment and producers boards’ 1 reaction to proposed freight M rates lower than those of the; Conference Lines. •! i This was confirmed yes-1 J terday by the managing;, director of the Auckland-!, based Mogal Corporation (Mr[, R. M. White), who said the, new company was anxious to; ship Canterbury’s primary!' products. | Shipping interests predict h freight cuts with the new ; service and a significant; move by the Belgium Govern- ; ment to break into long-held! traditional Conference services.

The Mogal Corporation and Maritime Carriers (N.Z.), Ltdhave formed a joint company, Pacific Maritime, to negotiate the overseas A.B.C. Container Lines agency in New Zealand.

Mr White said that A.B.C. [ Container Lines hoped to ob-| tain the backing of the New Zealand Government in j attempts to lower New Zealand’s export and import freight rates. “We will be offering guaranteed transit times with a regular service and with new 1 opportunities for New Zealand's prime world market • centres in the United Kingdom and Europe,” he said. South Island ports of call I had not been decided, Mr ■ White said, but Lyttelton’s [ prospects w'ould depend on ■ mainly primary produce availability. • ; The A.B.C. Container Lines; recently launched six 43,000-1 ■ tonne specially designed con1 tainer and bulk cargo ves- ■ ! seis for the New Zealandi Australia-United Kingdom- ! European trades. The venture has been i prompted by the Belgium millionaire shipowner, Mr T. iV. Rosenfeld, who formed • Maritime Carriers.

A.B.C. Containers is unden-. ! stood to be linked with Mr : Rosenfeld’s overseas com-; [pany, Antwerp Bulk Carriers,: ■ with a fleet of 15 vessels! I ranging frqm 304)00 to 65,000; ‘tonnes. Mr White confirmed a Belgium Governmenrbacking in 1 the new company of 70 per cent of SI2SM at 3 per cent •interest over 15 years. A.B.C. Containers has also successfully negotiated an Australian Wool Corporation trial consignment of 1200 containers — previously a steadfast Conference trade. The deputy director of economics at Lincoln College I (Dr PL Chudleigh) said that I while the Wool Corporation trial was a breakthrough, the company might need all of its SI2SM to break into the New Zealand Conference. Dr Chudleigh has presented several papers on the shipping of primary products in relation to the producer boards’ contracts with • Conference Lines.

Most of the boards followed the Meat Producers’ Board, said Dr Chudleigh, although the Dairy Board had used non-Conference shipping, but the Wool Board had generally followed the Meat Board. A spokesman for the Meat Board said a close look was taken at all proposals for shipping but four-year contracts existed for the United Kingdom run. He said the New Zealand Shipping Corporation was a member of the tonnage committee of the Conference and the proposed new service would be in opposition.

Mr White, however, hoped that attractive proposals would be made to the producer boards, and depending on their reaction ports of call in New Zealand would be decided.

“Our plans are for a direct service to New Zealand with the new vessels by the middle of 1979,” said Mr White.

Shipping interests at Lyttelton regard the attempt to break into Conference as a real threat to the whole svs-! tern. Lower freight rates. they! say, could persuade the pro-! ducer boards to accept the! proposals. Under the Conference system the shipping lines still select ports of call based on cargo availabilities, as was proved with the new ScansCarriers service with Timaru selected as the only South Island port of call. Scans Carriers is understood to meet transhipment costs of manufactured imports from Timaru, mainly consigned to Christchurch, in return for the lucrative primary exports. Non-Conference ships move into any ports with cargo inducements and, in the case of wool, would save a drain on levies imposed over the whole of the wool industry’ for tran- i shipment of cargoes.