TAURANGA: The Port of Tauranga has set a new record after processing one million shipping containers in one year.
Chief executive Mark Cairns said there was a momentous occasion was reached on Tuesday last week.
“We are the first port in New Zealand to reach the milestone”.
”We have gone from a small, insignificant regional port to the largest port in New Zealand by a good margin.”
According to Statistics NZ, the Port of Tauranga was the largest port by volume in the country.
The Port of Tauranga had spent $350 million on a 10-year capital investment programme to enable it to become ”big ship” capable. The upgrade was beginning to pay dividends, Mr Cairns said.
”It has been a good year and a relief to get the dredging programme done as 6 million cubic metres of material was excavated off the sea floor. There is a lot of risks involved with earthmoving and even more when it’s under water.”
Ships that can hold 9,500 containers are coming into the Port weekly to load New Zealand export cargoes which are shipped directly to North Asia.
”They are double the size that was previously calling into New Zealand, and we are getting those ships sooner than we expected.”
”These shipping lines are only calling into Tauranga, and they aren’t calling into any other New Zealand or Australian Port with these large vessels.”
About 41 per cent of New Zealand’s total exports by value flowed through the Port of Tauranga, Mr Cairns said. The primary products included dairy, meat, forestry, paper, linea boards, pulp, kiwifruit, apples and onions.
