29th June, 2009

 The Port of Waterford Company has no idea why SIPTU have withdrawn the threat of industrial action by five of their members to commence today (Monday).

The Port has communicated with the union and their members on numerous occasions since March 2009 regarding the need to reduce the costs of providing a boat service as part of a wider programme to bring costs in line with revenues.

All other Port employees have contributed considerably to cost reduction.

The fact of the matter is, therefore, that the consultation period is over and the company will today notify the Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment of a collective redundancy situation as required by law. The company will take all necessary steps to preserve their customers’ business.

2nd May 2009

The Directors of the Port of Waterford Company have paid fulsome tribute to the retiring chairman, Ben Gavin who presided as chairman for 10 years and whose active association with the port spans some 17 years.

Michael Flynn, incoming chairman, said: "Ben was at the helm through a period of considerable change and development including the transitional period when the port ceased to be known as Waterford Harbour Commissioners and became a commercial  Port company.

"It was also at about this time that the Port developed the new facility at Belview, Co Kilkenny and simultaneously its financial position improved. "Also during Ben’s term of office, the Tall Ships’ Races 2005 was hosted by Waterford and this was arguably the most memorable event in recent times. Ben was also chairman of the Irish Ports Association, the umbrella organisation for the ports industry and was asked to undertake a second term, something which was unprecedented."

Wishing Michael Flynn and his new team every success, Ben Gavin said: "Michael’s appointment as chairman comes at a time when the Port, in common with the entire Irish and European shipping and transport sector, faces challenges as the economic slowdown reduces the amount of goods shipped."

Chaired by Michael Flynn, the Port of Waterford board also includes Derek Donnelly; Paddy Murphy, Maurice Lonergan, Fiona Robbins-Ormonde, Noreen McDonnell, Derek Madigan and Stan McIlvenny, Chief Executive.

€11m quay extension at Waterford Container Terminal significantly boosts cargo business

Friday, September 19, 2008 

The Minister for Transport, Noel Dempsey TD, has officially opened a 190-metre quay extension at the Port of Waterford, an €11 million development boosting the port’s growing cargo business and its reputation as one of northwest Europe’s key maritime hubs.

Speaking at the opening, Minister Dempsey said: “Waterford Port provides a vital piece of economic infrastructure for the region and is a key maritime hub in northwest Europe. This fantastic new out of town facility at Belview provides the Port and the commercial and industrial activities in its vicinity with the room to continue to grow into the future.

Having this new dedicated bulk quay ensures maximum efficiencies at the Port which is critically important in today’s world of quick ship turnarounds. I have every confidence that this Port has a bright future ahead of it,” Minister Dempey added.

The investment augers well for the future at the busy terminal, according to Port of Waterford chairman, Ben Gavin. “This is a continuation of the existing quay and results in the Belview Container and Bulk Cargo Terminals offering an unbroken length of 843 metres.

“That gives a measure of the scale of this most modern port facility. Its success to date has allowed us to cover 75 per cent of the €11m cost from our own resources. The directors are also grateful for the contribution from the Department under the National Development Plan.

“Waterford has been a prominent haven for shipping from the very beginning of maritime history. Our strategic location at the trinity of rivers that sustain the southeast region has ensured a vital and continuing role. We are happy and proud to carry forward that tradition in much more dynamic and disciplined times.

“We do so with a proven commitment to providing a competitive service at the cutting edge of the national economy. We do it 24 hours a day, every day, bearing in mind that Waterford is unique in the sense that we do not have captive port business but rather compete in the marketplace for every container and tonne of bulk commodity which move over our quays. This keeps the port’s management thinking ahead of the business curve.”

Improvements to the road network across the southeast will boost Port business, Mr Gavin added. With this in mind, the Port has already secured planning permission from Kilkenny County Council for the construction of a further 800 metres of quay and a suite of other port-related developments.

Unprecedented investment in the roads network under Transport 21 will yield spectacular benefits and Waterford and the region is already attracting sharper focus from transport providers, commercial and industrial investors, Mr Gavin added.

“Over half the population of the Republic live within 100 miles of Waterford and with the more efficient conjunction of the N9 to Dublin, the N24 to Limerick/Galway and N25 to Cork and Rosslare on the doorstep of the city and the quayside of the port, the economic power from this new and improved union will make a very positive impact,” he concluded.

Port of Waterford comment on An Bord Pleanala decision

re: Ringaskiddy proposals

27th June 2008

The decision by An Bord Pleanála to reject an application from Port of Cork for a new development at Ringaskiddy, Cork has been welcomed by a spokesman for Port of Waterford which was among the appellants represented at an oral hearing in Cork earlier this year.

The spokesman said: “We welcome the decision by the State Planning Appeals Board to uphold the appeals against this project. This was never about the ports of Cork and Waterford’s narrow commercial interests but rather the efficient use of national resources deployed in the best way to support the national strategic interest. 

“We contended that the application made by Port of Cork was ill-conceived, unviable and unsustainable – assertions for which we were publicly pilloried by the proposers of this scheme who wrongly labelled our action as ‘anti-competitive’ and ‘vexatious’.

“Freight capacity in an all-island market context can be better provided for – in both the short and longer term - at alternative locations with better inter-modal transport links and existing planning permissions for further development of port-related facilities. Indeed, the absence of rail connectivity to Ringaskiddy or any proposals for future provision in this regard is among the reasons cited by An Bord Pleanála for their decision.

“The more sustainable option of building on what we have will considerably reduce environmental impacts and allow Ireland as a whole to better coordinate ports capacity.”

The Port of Waterford spokesman added, “On the day that oil prices rose above US$140 a barrel, the Port of Waterford remains committed to exploring alliances and partnerships to develop multi-modal infrastructure at Waterford Container Terminal for which we have existing planning permission.”

Cruise ship calls increasingly important to Irish tourism

- Minister Cullen

16th May 2008

With over eight million visitors to Ireland having spent an estimated ?4.902 billion in 2007 and five million Europeans expected to take cruise holidays each year by 2015, Martin Cullen TD, Minister for Arts, Sport & Tourism, has today (May 16) highlighted the important economic contribution made by cruise ships calling to Irish ports.

Speaking on board M/S Andrea which called to Waterford as part of a Channel Islands and Celtic Sea cruise, Minister Cullen said that the 14 cruise ship calls due in Waterford alone this year have the capacity to bring over 7,600 high-spending passengers to the southeast.

“Waterford is just one of several Irish ports that attract cruise ships each year and the business that these ships bring to the regions involved should not be underestimated. I know, for instance, that each cruise ship call delivers a noticeable upturn in trade at high-end retailers and at locations such as the Waterford Crystal Visitor Centre which is one of the major attractions that helps put Waterford on the map for cruise companies as they shape their itineraries.

“While each of the ports that facilitate cruise ship calls present particular attractions, a special strength of Waterford is that it can accommodate some of the smaller liners right in the heart of the city just as is happening with M/S Andrea on what I believe is the first of three calls it will make here this year. Indeed, while they obviously have fewer passengers and crew on board, these smaller cruise ships are frequently more exclusive and bring higher yields for the host ports,” Minister Cullen added.

“In the 10 years to 2005, demand for cruising worldwide more than doubled from 5.7 million to 14.4 million passengers. Over the same period, the number of Europeans taking cruise holidays around the world more than trebled from one million to 3.3 million.

“By 2010, Europe could experience a million extra cruise tourists with increasing numbers of U.S. travellers attracted by American ships that are being redeployed in Europe and by the introduction of a new generation of larger ships. It’s projected that there will be more than 3.6 million cruise passengers embarking on holidays within Europe and making 17 million visits to European ports by the turn of the decade. As Minister for Arts, Sport & Tourism, I am committed to ensuring that Irish tourism builds on its already important contribution to our economy and the cruise business will be significant in this regard.”

For his part, Ben Gavin, chairman, Port of Waterford added, “In collaboration with our cruise marketing partners in Fáilte Ireland and Waterford Crystal, we’re delighted to welcome and facilitate the various cruise liners that call here each year and I was particularly pleased recently to greet the captain and crew of Norwegian Jewel which carries over 2,300 passengers and 1,300-plus crew. We also look forward to the development of dedicated cruise liner berthing facilities in the city.

“To get some sense of what the economic impact of the cruise business could be here in Ireland over the years ahead, I recently reviewed some European Cruise Council data from Germany where this business is more developed. The estimates there are that the cruise business supports 17,000 jobs and is responsible for ?1.1 billion in direct expenditure through 200,000 port visits.

“While half the €1.1 billion expenditure goes to German shipyards where new vessels are built, other cruise-related expenditure in the German economy included €75m in commissions to German travel agents while German food and beverage manufacturers sell €34m of goods and services to the cruise industry. An estimated 432m was spent on German manufacturers of non-durable goods, 461 million on metal products and machinery and €89 million on German financial and business services. Cruise passengers spent an estimated €104m in Germany in 2005 – averaging 474 per person in each port visited.

“Separately, the Passenger Shipping Association (PSA) estimates that there was a significant 11% increase in UK cruise passenger numbers in 2007, bringing the overall number of Britons taking a cruise to 1.35 million. Importantly, the number of first time cruisers increased considerably and they, in turn, are becoming repeat bookers – a fact that bodes well for the future of the cruise business.”

Looking more widely, the Port chairman said, “Cruise companies, shipbuilding yards and cruise passengers now account for €8.3 billion of direct expenditure in Europe and this is set to increase by 50 per cent to €12.7 billion by 2010. The cruise industry is already responsible for more than 180,000 jobs across Europe and this could grow by more than 50,000 by 2010.

“Predictions for 2008 show that the growth trend is set to continue with the UK forecasting that the number of cruisers will reach 1.55 million, a further 14% rise on 2007. This gives us in Ireland a sense of the prize that’s there to be grasped if we can continue to build on successes to date in marketing our ports to key decision-makers in the cruise business.”

Port of Waterford welcomes City Council’s commitment to South Quays development

The Port of Waterford today welcomed the commitment of Waterford City Council to develop the South Quays in Waterford as a focal point for civic, commercial and tourist activity. The Council’s announcement comes in the wake of their successful acquisition from the Port of Waterford of a 1.35 acre riverfront car park, adjacent to the historic Clock Tower.

Stan McIlvenny, chief executive, Port of Waterford, has been a leading advocate for the regeneration of the city’s waterfront. “I am delighted to learn of the Council’s intentions for the South Quays. It builds on our own master-plan for the waterfront that we hope, in time, will transform this part of the city. I very much share Mayor O’Halloran’s vision for a ‘European-style linear park featuring a series of plazas, restaurants, galleries, bars and cafés’. This is precisely what is needed and the Port will play its part in bringing forward a number of new projects that will compliment this approach.”

The Port is well advanced in its master-planning of the South Quays and made a number of submissions to the review of the recently adopted City Development Plan advocating opportunities for riverside development projects on both sides of the river. Now that the Council has clearly stated its commitment to develop the South Quays, a number of these projects will be advanced by the Port and may be submitted in the form of planning applications later this year.