Oamaru port wins cement trade

Press, 20 August 1983, Page 2

Oamaru port wins cement trade

Parliamentary reporter New Zealand Cement Holdings and the Oamaru Borough Council have won their battle for permission to ship cement from the Oamaru Port. The Minister of Transport, Mr Gair, announced yesterday that he had allowed appeals against a New Zealand Ports Authority decisioon not to allow the port’s reopining. The decision means that the port will be reopened for the domestic shipment of bulk cement from the proposed works at Weston, and Timaru will be used for the shipment of bagged cement. A consensus among the parties at this week’s appeal hearing lay behind the decision. That in turn hinged on the acceptance by the Timaru Harbour Board and the Railways Corporatin that without reopeing the Oamaru port, the cement works at Weston would not be built. Mr Gair said that the Ports Authority’s decision was made on the basis that the Weston works would be built regardless of whether

the Oamaru port was reopened. “Once it is accepted that without the use of Oamaru, the cement workd would not be built, the balance then shifts strongly in favour of Oamaru,” he said.

“The material before me amply justified such an acceptance, and therefore the concession by Timaru and the Railways was properly made.” The Minister had obtained assurances that port development at Oamaru would not exceed that required for handling bulk cement.

Both his consent and that of the Ports Authority would be needed before any further development could obcur.

Mr Gair said he was satisfied with an agreement among the parties on the use of rail for cement transport.

He noted that the Ports Authority had been criticised for its decision not to allow the reopening of the port of Oamaru.

“I wish to record that I am satisfied that the authority reached its decision in good faith on the basis of the information before it,” he said.