Diverse business keeps Milford Haven in shape 14 £22.1m, and the


Lower earnings from cargo on the Waterway were offset by diversified earnings on land which have kept Milford Haven in good shape, said the port in its annual report published in May. In its 60th year since its creation


by an Act of Parliament in 1958, turnover dropped from £22.4m to


business


recorded a slight loss aſter tax of £1m, primarily due to exceptional property revaluations and pension service costs. However, the business generated significant cash flow, retained robust reserves and continued at a measured pace with its landside diversification plans, particularly the Milford Waterfront. It also made progress with plans


to make Pembroke Port a leading centre for marine renewable energy and engineering businesses. Chair, Chris Martin stated: “Following a decade


locations for the growth of key UK industries.” The Port of Milford Haven actually covers


Jones three zones


of operation: Oil and gas shipping operates to and from terminals on both sides of the waterway stretching from Valero Pembrokeshire Oil Terminal on the east, down to South Hook LNG to the west. Milford Haven is the UK’s top


of


investment, combined with our own focus on creating facilities that are attractive to the emergent marine energy industries, the Milford Haven Waterway remains a powerful economic hub. As the next decade beckons, we are not standing still and will invest to deliver long-term stable growth.” Interim chief executive Andy


Jones added that business stability allowed investment in infrastructure at a time when the nation is recognising how vital ports are to the UK economy. He said that with 95% of the UK trade transported by sea,


“it’s


done with such efficiency that it has taken Brexit for the port sector’s fundamental value to be recognised. We need continued investment in port infrastructure to make the most of trade opportunities. We also see a strong case for port environments to expand and act as catalyst


energy port and Wales’ busiest port handling around 20% of Britain’s seaborne trade in oil and gas and is widely recognised as the nation’s energy capital, Jones explained. In 2017 it ranked fiſth in the UK in terms of cargo tonnage handled (DfT final figures for 2018 are expected to be published in August). Jones added: “In 2018 we handled 31m tonnes, with more than 2,000 commercial ships visiting. The vast majority of that cargo is liquid bulk, with oil based and liquefied natural gas products being the predominant cargo.” However, the port also handles


bulk cargo such as animal feed, aggregates and timber as well as breakbulk, heavy liſt and project cargo. Pembroke is also South Wales’ busiest ferry port, linked by an Irish Ferries service to Rosslare in Ireland, and is Wales’ biggest fishing port. Upriver from there is Pembroke


Port, where the ferry terminal is located. A range of other cargoes also move through Pembroke, from animal feeds and quarry products to large components manufactured and exported by local engineering firms. Pembroke Port is also the base for Svitzer’s tug fleet, which includes some of the world’s largest harbour tugs tasked with managing the LNG ships that visit the port. The third port zone is Milford Docks, Wales’ largest fishing harbour in the town of Milford Haven.


Milford Haven is a Trust Port, continues, adding: “The


advantages vary depending on from where you look at it. As a port we have no shareholders, so pay no dividends. This enables us to reinvest all our profits back into the business, and as befits our status as a Trust Port, that almost always means into the Waterway area itself. For our customers, it is comforting to know we will ensure our infrastructure and delivery of service is among the very best. “For those living in or close


to Milford Haven, having an international port, and the UK’s largest energy port on their doorstep means they hopefully feel more directly the economic benefits that a busy commercial port brings. This might be through the port’s commercial partnerships with local business, our more extensive community targeted investments, or the resource we apply to working with government and local authorities to help grow the regional economy. “Whilst we don’t have shareholders, we


do have


stakeholders, those who through their role in public administration, private business or simply by virtue of living locally, have an interest, and a say, in how this port is run. There is the knowledge (which we foster enthusiastically) among stakeholders that through an Act of Parliament, the port’s board of directors are entrusted with a duty to keep the port working effectively for future generations here in Pembrokeshire. Recent ‘Good Governance’ guidance published by the Department for Transport bolstered the extent to which we are accountable and open in the way we operate our business, which further cements that link between the local community and the port itself. We closely


engage with our stakeholders and local communities around the Waterway throughout the year. “ The port, meanwhile, is always


looking at new coastwise cargo opportunities to expand at Pembroke Port. Recently several thousand tonnes


of granite


rock armour was shipped to the nuclear power station site at Hinckley Point from a local


UK Government’s City Deal for the Swansea Bay region. This £28m project would see Pembroke Port transformed to make it fit to host marine energy companies developing, testing and servicing devices. Infrastructure in Pembroke Port would include new launching and handling facilities as well as construction and conversion of buildings for


Issue 5 2019 - Freight Business Journal


///WALES


investment and supporting thousands of jobs.


Although


recent data is limited, a 2011 economic report - which is still applicable, even though the figures will have tracked upwards – says that the Waterway supports over 5,000 jobs in Wales as a whole, 4,000 of which are in Pembrokeshire. Some 30% of jobs in the local


economy are in oil refining, gas processing and power generation and 10% in sea transport services. In 2011, £324m of gross value


added (GVA) was injected into the Pembrokeshire economy by activities dependent on the waterway with £88.5m GVA put into the Welsh economy as a whole. Three marine renewable


quarry, underlining the fact that such transport can open up new markets for local businesses. The port is currently going through a consultation to export refuse derived fuel (RDF) from Pembroke to Sweden. Those ships could potentially return with biomass from timber exporting countries in north east Europe. Opportunities to split cargos also raise some interesting possibilities, says Jones. Milford Haven


might be


geographically remote from a land perspective but it is very close to the Irish Sea and Bristol Channel shipping routes where about 8,000 vessels pass every year. The port is perfectly positioned and well-equipped to offer layover berths for any planned, short- notice or emergency repairs as well as crew changeover and supplies. More immediate plans include


the Pembroke Dock Marine project which forms part of the


Birdport set to fly aſter acquisition


In early 2018, SIMEC, part of Sanjeev


Gupta’s global GFG


Alliance, acquired the freehold of the private Bird Port on the river Usk near Newport in South Wales. Later in the same year SIMEC


also acquired the Cargo Services UK operating business, which was subsequently re-named SIMEC Ports. Bird Port is directly adjacent to


GFG’s Liberty Steel Newport steel rolling mill and its SIMEC-Atlantis power station.


GFG says that the purchase


was a strategic move to enable it to create a new integrated port complex on the River Usk. The facility has three berths - two short-sea and one deep-sea - high quality warehousing, and a rail connection. Historically Bird Port handled


over 500,000 tonnes annually of steel products, mostly exports of high-quality manufactured steel coil from the main South Wales producers plus imports of


fabrication and maintenance. On the Waterway itself, pre-


consented testing areas will be created so that developers can bring forward projects to full scale deployment as quickly and efficiently as possible. There will also be an offshore grid-connected demonstration zone where successful designs can be prepared for marketing. Jones explains: “This is a sector with huge potential (expected to be worth £76bn by 2050) and Pembroke Port, with its strong local supply chain with a long history of excellence in energy- related fabrication and ship building, coupled to the fact it sits on the edge of some of the best marine energy resources in the world, is an obvious location to develop this capability.” The port, along with the cluster


of energy-related businesses along the Waterway, is a key driver of economic activity in Pembrokeshire, attracting inward


raw materials and deliveries of recycled feedstock for the steel mill.


The port is unique in being the


only facility on the west coast of the UK offering a covered loading dock, and is one of only four such facilities nationally. SIMEC is investing in the port


complex to support the growth of new marine and rail traffic both for its sister GFG businesses, and the wider Welsh economy as an open-access port operator. New biofuel feedstock volumes for the SIMEC-Atlantis power station plus scrap steel to be recycled


companies developing wave energy devices have already located there. Jones concludes: “However,


you may be surprised to learn that we are also investing heavily in the tourism sector. We are building on Pembrokeshire’s strength as a tourist hotspot to create a new destination within the county which offers visitors a unique experience. We own and operate Milford Marina so, naturally, we are focusing on the land around this area, which we have branded Milford Waterfront. Whilst we are very proud of the more traditional port activities we oversee, the landscape, coastline and wildlife on the doorstep are world-class and present an unusual opportunity for a business such as ours. “Our own development


plans will, we hope, help create a thriving tourism economy in a formerly industrialised waterfront area which will benefit businesses operating in a local economy that has been through tough times in recent years.”


at Liberty Steel Newport are planned in the next few years. To support these SIMEC will


be investing in new cranes and warehouses plus upgrading its mobile cargo handling fleet. SIMEC says the Newport


operations provide a full port-centric supply chain service including road and rail operations plus one of the leading ships agencies in the region. SIMEC also owns and


operates port facilities in Blyth, Northumberland as well as in Australia and the US.


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