Chairman’s Report
It has now been more than six months since I was appointed Chairman of the new Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL) Board, and since the Q Port Holdings consortium took ownership of the company. Even during this relatively short period of time, I have been very impressed to see the commitment of our new shareholders to continue building sustainable, long term value in the Port of Brisbane.
The port stands out as one of the finest of global infrastructure assets, balancing a wide product and customer base with substantial scope for expansion. This combination provides the potential for strong shareholder returns while continuing to act as an engine for the growth of the Queensland and northern New South Wales economies.
Immediately following the change of ownership in December 2010 we were fortunate to have available the services of a very effective Managing Director, Alistair Baillie, who has now returned to his non-executive Director role following the appointment of Russell Smith as Chief Executive Officer. In Russell, the Board is delighted to have found such a talented and experienced port executive to lead our strong management team. Moving forward we are now focused on ensuring that the company is well capitalised for growth to appropriately balance the risk reward profile for the asset as a whole, as well as for development opportunities as they arise.
The oversight of occupational health and safety remains a key priority for the Board for the year ahead, and we are particularly keen to see further improvements in the safety performance of the port.
The Board looks forward to working with Russell and the management team as we strive to provide value to our customers and work effectively with our many other stakeholders over the next 12 months and beyond.
Jeremy Maycock
Chairman
Chief Executive Officer’s Report
The last 12 months have been a period of significant change for the Port of Brisbane. The sale process reached its conclusion and the company is now approaching its first year under private ownership. We also began 2011 with one of Queensland’s worst natural disasters in the form of the flood crisis.
Despite the effects of the floods and the Japanese tsunami, trade performance was strong with a 6.5% increase in container trade to 978,814 teus and a 3.3% increase in total trade to 33 million tonnes. These results demonstrate the extremely robust nature of the port on the back of our diverse trade base, strategic location and significant land base – something we will look to leverage to capture additional trade through the port.
As a major infrastructure asset and the key gateway to South East Queensland, we have a strong focus on maintaining and expanding our asset base. To this end, we have just completed a major project to duplicate the Captain Bishop Bridge access into the port and upgrade associated roads. This will ensure safe and efficient access to the port well into the future and links in to the major ongoing construction works to upgrade the Port of Brisbane Motorway. Rail linkages into our hinterland will also be a key focus for the port moving forward, to eliminate current capacity constraints and ensure an appropriate modal split for landside transport servicing the port. Meanwhile, on the waterfront the construction of Berths 11 and 12 is progressing on schedule.
One of our key targets for the year ahead will be to set the organisation and its culture up for the challenges and opportunities of the future. Internally this adjustment is well underway. The wellbeing of our people is of critical importance and improving our safety culture remains a top priority.
Externally, our shareholders and our new independent Chairman, Jerry Maycock, bring an impressive range of experience to the governance of the company, something that will be instrumental to our business moving forward. Our relationships with our customers are vital to our success, and our primary focus is to continue engaging with them to ensure mutually beneficial outcomes.
For all of our employees, the last year has been a challenging time and I would sincerely like to thank them for the commitment and courage they have shown during this period of change. We have great things ahead of us and I am confident that we can work together as a team to proactively outperform the targets we have set ourselves.
Russell Smith
Chief Executive Officer