Port profits up

Albany Port Authority has had a 60 per cent increase in profit for the past financial year due to a good harvest and reduced spending on maintenance.

The port authority registered a profit of $3.76 million before tax and $2.6 million after tax in 2011-12, despite overall port trade being down 11.5 per cent on budget.

Albany Port Authority chief executive Brad Williamson said the increase could be put down to a significantly better rainfall creating higher grain production – a 33 per cent increase in grain export.

Mr Williamson said the port also spent 14 per cent less than budgeted on maintenance.

“We had a good profit based on better grain and keeping costs down, we’re pleased with that result,” he said.

“If you look at the total port trade you see that we’re bouncing around three to four million tonnes each year.

“So it generally depends on whether it rains or not.”

Mr Williamson said woodchips have remained constant compared with the previous year, although it remained to be seen how Tasmanian timber company Gunns entering into voluntary administration would affect the port.

“Woodchips have come off, they’re sitting at around 1.4 million tonnes, but that seems to be stable although the Gunns administration might lower that a bit,” he said.

“We’re a bit worried but we think they will keep on shipping.”

Mr Williamson said Albany Port trade had not increased significantly from 2008 to 2012, because unlike other ports, it had been immune to the mining boom.

“If you look at every other bulk product port in the State they have had a substantial growth in trade and that’s all due to mining,” he said.

“Our port is reasonably stable, we’re trying to get a mine up, the (proposed Southdown Magnetite) Grange project.

“We would really like to get another one or two million tonnes to get better utilisation of our berths, our tugs and our stevedores.”

Mr Williamson said the port was always on the look out for more trading options.

“In addition to Grange, we’re still taking quite seriously to another iron ore producer outside our catchment in the Yilgarn area, they’re still working through the costs at the moment,” he said.