International Benchmarking of Container Stevedoring

The productivity at Australian container terminals, as measured by Net Crane Rates, has improved significantly in absolute terms since 1997.

For the sample of ship calls and terminals studied by the Commission, productivity improved also in relative terms, with the productivity improvement at Australian terminals generally greater than at overseas terminals between 1997 and 2002.

As a consequence, there was an appreciable reduction in the overall productivity gap between Australian terminals and those at the overseas ports included in the study

• this has been achieved despite inherent disadvantages related to generally smaller trade volumes and throughput at Australian terminals.

In 1997, container handling charges at Australian terminals were higher than those at most of the overseas terminals included in the study. Although still true, by 2002, the gap had been reduced, except for Nagoya and those sampled in the US.

Notwithstanding the productivity improvements since 1997, there may be scope for further gains in the relative performance of Australian terminals. For example, Tauranga terminal in New Zealand has been able to deliver higher productivity and lower charges than its Australian counterparts, with similar or lower throughput.