Major imports congestion and a flow-on threat to the peak export season has prompted the Ministry of Transport to call a meeting of supply chain players this week – but they’ll be thrashing out short-term relief measures, not a long-term fix.

The meeting in Auckland on Tuesday comes as concerns escalate about container port shipping congestion, import supply chain choke, an empty container logjam, and how it will all hit New Zealand’s imminent peak export season.

Maersk, the world’s biggest container shipping line, expects the New Zealand jam to continue until at least June.

Empty containers are piling up in overwhelmed Auckland depots putting them out of reach of needy exporters around the country and the jam means importers can’t de-hire their boxes.

In a congestion situation update letter to shipping lines, ports, freight forwarders, transport operators, container yards and some importer/exporter groups, MoT said the workshop invitation list was limited to keep it manageable and productive.

Freight sectors told the Herald invitees had been “selected” and could send just one representative.

MoT said the workshop was “to bring together individuals from across the supply chain with operational expertise to explore workable, immediate, cross-industry mitigations of the congestion challenge.”

The congestion at ports, which started at import gateway Ports of Auckland around September with steadily lengthening delays for container ships to unload, is a result of post-pandemic worldwide shipping schedule disruption.Shipping lines initially reacted to the Covid outbreak by cancelling or limiting services, as air freight space disappeared and consumer demand for imports escalated.

However, New Zealand’s imports disruption, which has delayed deliveries to store shelves, warehouses and manufacturers, and the empty container pile up in Auckland, are also blamed on the failure of the Auckland Council-owned port to fully implement a container automation project started in 2016. This has undercut productivity at the port, and critics say, is why the port has a critical labour shortage when it most needed to be at the top of its game.

Auckland Mayor Phil Goff, on behalf of the council, has asked the port board to commission an independent review of the automation project.

Fresh industrial action at Australian container ports this year is expected to cause further delays to ship arrivals in New Zealand.

New Transport Minister Michael Wood told the Herald he would in the coming week meetwith the NZ Council of Cargo Owners

to talk about solutions.

“Officials have assisted with the Ports of Auckland’s application to bring five skilled crane drivers from overseas. I understand a border exception has been granted and some of their visas have been submitted and approved, and any incoming workers will need to go through the normal MIQ process,” Wood said.

MoT’s latest email to the supply chain sector cited data from global container shipping consultancy Sea Intelligence that showed global container service reliability had fallen to its lowest levels since records began in 2011, with just 44.6 per cent of vessels arriving on time globally in December 2020.

The ministry’s own container traffic data for the last calendar quarter of 2020 had shown total import and export trade was down 2.2 per cent compared to the same period in 2019.

Container trade had picked up in December with full container imports up 17.6 per cent on December 2019, and full container exports up 3.5 per cent.

“Nonetheless, significant supply chain challenges remain. This includes empty containers being stuck in Auckland depots, which are operating at, or over, full capacity, and importers being unable to de-hire their containers.

“This will likely impact exporters around the country in the coming peak export season as well,” the MoT email to the sector said.

There was Government support for companies and organisations with particular supply chain congestion challenges.

Customs had a dedicated email address [email protected] to assist in border clearance of critical supplies, including personal protective equipment (PPE), medical equipment and pharmaceutical supplies.

Covid vaccines will mostly be airfreighted into New Zealand, though ports, experts in temperature-controlled storage, have been consulted on storage matters, the Herald has learned.

NZTE and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Trade also have operations dedicated to advising and helping exporters with international supply chain challenges, said MoT.

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