Port of Tauranga sees container volumes rise as much as 25% this year on new services
Aug. 29 (BusinessDesk) – Port of Tauranga says container volumes will rise as much as 25% this year, reflecting new
services including a fortnightly visit from Mediterranean Shipping Co. linking New Zealand and Australia with North and
Central America.
MSC, the world’s second-largest container line by capacity, announced it would start its Oceania Express Service in
October, with Tauranga its only New Zealand stop. It plans to trans-ship cargo from six other New Zealand ports using
its Capricorn, Kiwi and Pacific Island services, said MSC national operations director Mark Godfrey, in a statement.
Port of Tauranga said 40% of the forecast container volume increase this year would be from trans-shipped cargo. It
claims growth in that business as a victory over rivals such as Ports of Auckland because the trend for ship visits is
likely to be fewer, larger vessels calling at fewer ports.
In the year ended June 30, Tauranga’s container trans-shipment volumes jumped 52%. While Tauranga claims the crown of
biggest port by volume overall, the 590,506 TEUs (twenty foot equivalent units) it handled in the latest year lags
behind Auckland’s 894,383 TEUs.
Tauranga had already flagged five new weekly vessel calls to its port this financial year, adding 180 extra visits a
year, allowing for consolidation of some services, the company said.
Shares of Port of Tauranga traded on Friday at $9.30 and have climbed 25% this year.
(BusinessDesk)