SPRING 2010 AUSTRALIA Print Post Approved PP255003/07533 Approved Print Post Viewpoint: Who cares about seafarers? Profile: Vince Tremaine Adelaide faces a mining boom Port costs compared Tradegate News Committed to Quality from Ships to Shores DP World Brisbane DP World Sydney DP World Melbourne DP World Adelaide DP World Fremantle Fisherman Islands Port Drive West Swanson Berth 5 1 Port Beach Road Port Drive 42 Friendship Road, Mackenzie Road, Footscray Coghlan Road North Fremantle Port of Brisbane Matraville Melbourne Outer Harbour WA 6159 QLD 4178 Australia NSW 2036 Australia VIC 3011 Australia SA Australia 5018 Australia Tel: + 61 7 3895 9104 Tel: +61 2 9394 0900 Tel: +61 3 9687 4266 Tel: +61 8 8248 9325 Tel: +61 8 9430 0111 www.dpworld.com Spring 2010 AUSTRALIA CONTENTS 2 ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM THE BRIDGE Whatever happened to infrastructure? 4 VIEWPOINT Year of The Seafarer 6 PROFILE Vincent Tremaine, of Flinders Ports 10 SOUTH AUSTRALIA’S CHANGING FacES • Mining bonanza ahead • Techport’s common-user facility • FreightLink’s new era • The hard times of Hagen Stehr • Tuna industry booms again • GM Holden looks forward • Call for harmonisation 22 PORT COSTS COMPARED Home and international; rates survey 28 NavIGATION New $6m pilot simulator 30 TRADEGATE NEWS Do we need another review? 36 THE ECONOMY • Agribusiness’ best year • SMEs backbone of exports 42 LEGAL Limiting owners’ liability 46 THE SCENE Brisbane dinner; Queensland golf day 48 YOUNG SHIPPING AUSTRALIA Five points for getting ahead 50 SIGNAL SAL supports fiscal reforms. THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF Shipping Australia Ltd Level 6, 131 York Street, Sydney NSW 2000 PO Box Q388 Sydney NSW 1230 1. Adelaide old and new (02) 9266 9911 4 (02) 9268 0230 www.shippingaustralia.com.au AUSTRALIA Town Hall and The Tram PUBLISHED FOR SHIPPING AUSTRALIA LTD BY 2. Vince Tremaine, Flinders Ports Commercial Suite 5, 3. Brian Smedley, SA Wine Industry 99 Jones St (Dalgety Square) Ultimo NSW 2007 Association (02) 9211 7422 (02) 9211 9061 www.showcasepublications.com.au 4 2 3 1 4. Andrew Fletcher, DefenceSA EDITORIAL Executive editor - Llew Russell Feature writer - Archie Bayvel 5 4 5. Brian Jeffriess, Tuna Industry ADMINISTRATION Sarah Abrahams [email protected] Association ADVERTISING CO-ORDINATOR For Advertising in the next issue Call Steve Moxey (02) 9211 7422 [email protected] GRAPHIC DESIGNER Anne Mackintosh [email protected] Announcements from the bridge By LLEW RUSSEL Whatever happened to infrastructure? E congratulate It was disappointing during the election receive a fair trial in the light of the campaign that both leaders omitted to media attack on Captain Santos and on the new minority mention the importance of upgrading the shipping company at the time of the Labor infrastructure in Australia, particularly accident and subsequently. W for transport, and developing the ways government on its Whilst it was a serious accident and a and means of making our existing most regrettable occurrence, the use election. Whilst there infrastructure more efficient and of words in the media like ‘dumping’ of productive. SAL strongly supports the will undoubtedly be a oil rather than ‘spilling’, ‘disregard for retention of Infrastructure Australia the potential pollution affects’ and so much greater degree of as well as the National Transport on cloud the fact that Captain Santos, uncertainty and Commission working together to with his seamanship and expertise, was promote the national freight network instability as a result of able to bring both the vessel and crew in Australia as well as the proposed safely to port in very extreme weather any minority national port development strategy. conditions. Criminalisation of seafarers government, I fully Since the last edition of our magazine, is becoming a worldwide phenomenon endorse the views of there have been a number of and it is hoped that Australia, which the Australian Chamber developments which apart from the prides itself on a fair and equitable political scene, have continued to justice system, will not join the growing of Commerce and challenge the maritime industry in list of countries that have basically Industry stated shortly Australia. gaoled seafarers first and asked questions second. after the federal The government has decided that election, that whatever where, for example, a freight forwarder I wrote an article on overweight or contracts for cargo to be delivered misdeclared weights of containers government was formed from outside Australia to a place of in the winter edition of this magazine it should not shy away consignment in Australia that it should and on that score, there have been be GST free all the way through. This significant developments. Firstly, from the major reforms. would appear to have ramifications the World Shipping Council and They need to be made for shipping lines in terms of the the International Cargo Handling current practice of charging GST Coordination Association have been in so many areas of our on land based costs in Australia for investigating and surveying shipowners economy in order to try imported containers, particularly within regarding the best way of weighing the container terminal, such as the outward containers with the view and reduce the massive payment of terminal handling charges, to eventually deciding whether to over regulation that documentation fees and wharfage. The propose to the International Maritime applies to everyone at Australian Taxation Office agreed that Organisation, the establishment of this is an area that required clarification a legal requirement that all loaded different levels in and have been consulting Shipping containers be weighed prior to being our society. Australia on the best way to develop a loaded onboard a vessel. This work is fact sheet specifically for the shipping building on the International Chamber There has been a industry. We are urging the ATO to of Shipping document ‘Safe Transport develop that fact sheet as quickly as of Containers by Sea: Guidelines and buildup in the nationally possible to avoid the current level of Best Practices’ which was published agreed reform agenda uncertainty and to provide for national at the end of 2008. The emphasis in and the council of consistency in application. those guidelines was the importance of those who packed containers The master of the Pacific Adventurer, Australian Governments declaring the correct weight but it Captain Santos and the shipping was also suggested that the container will soon be considering company involved have been terminal should verify the container a report card on what committed for trial in Queensland weight against documentation by use following the oil spill by that vessel off has been acheived. of a weighbridge or weight gauge/load the coast of South East Queensland in indicator on yard equipment. There will be March last year. SAL has been most significant gaps. concerned that the defendants will not Container weighing is a complex issue 2 2010 AUSTRALIA Spring Announcements from the bridge By LLEW RUSSEL but making it compulsory would be the container which includes the tare lines and we have taken the opportunity very difficult for developing countries nett weight, the nett weight of cargo to set out cost increases over the last and smaller ports and it could have and any packing material within the three years in major Australian ports similar problems to those that are likely container. This gross weight should during a time of severe challenges for to arise as a result of the proposed 100 be shown on all documentation shipping lines imposed by the global per cent screening of import containers including the Pre-Receival Advice. financial crisis. As an indicator of the into the United States. A timetable for Weighing mechanisms could be competitiveness of Australian ports, the latter issue has been extended established at packing stations and/or and it is hoped that the requirement public weighbridges used to provide we have also conducted a survey of will be rescinded because of its the required certificate. This weight primarily ship based port costs based impracticability. certificate could also be passed to on public tariffs and constructed a port the container terminals receiving the cost index with Melbourne port costs as Secondly, putting weighbridges Australian export containers overseas. the base. in terminals poses its own serious There are other potential solutions and problems regarding how to handle Our Viewpoint article examines what Shipping Australia continues to urge all containers that are found to be over parties to collaborate on a practical, risk really is happening in the Year of axle weights and thirdly, many countries based solution to this complex problem. the Seafarer as far as their welfare overseas, particularly the United States, We do agree that it is time to take is concerned and all the risks they many terminals in China and Japan urgent action on this important issue. face daily at sea including, of course, and other countries are weighing their the potential of being hijacked by outward containers so it would be I reported previously on our problems pirates. The difficulty of attracting new weighing those containers twice as with the application of the Fair Work recruits to be the seafarers of the they come into terminals in Australia. Act to a large number of permit vessels It is not just the cost of establishing that carry Australian cargo around future remains a challenge for us all. weighbridges in container terminals, but the Australian coast if an Australian Increasing criminalisation of seafarers the high repairs and maintenance costs licensed vessel is not available. More as mentioned above also continues to and labour and electronic systems costs recent cost modelling has revealed deter would be seafarers from entering that are required to support the facilities that our previous cost estimates were this industry.