Similar efforts, along with intentional labor shortages, have continued into the first month of 2015. For example, yesterday, the ILWU ordered a 12-hour work stoppage commencing at 7:00 a.m. Today, ILWU members worked during the morning, but walked off the job without notice at 1:15 p.m. Work stoppages like this cause serious hardship to truckers, shippers, and the general public.

Productivity at Terminal 6 continues to fall well below acceptable historical levels. In May 2012, prior to the labor dispute which arose in June 2012, ILWU labor was producing approximately 24.8 moves per hour. However, in the last quarter of 2014, ILWU labor was producing at only approximately 13.2 moves per hour—a roughly 47% reduction. This level of production is far below industry as well as Terminal 6 standards.

Terminal 6 is the only international shipping container terminal in Oregon. As such, it is a powerful economic engine to the region that offers significant benefits to thousands of businesses, workers and consumers. For this reason, the ILWU’s deliberate and continuous work delays since June 2012 threaten the terminal’s future viability as a critical hub of regional economic activity. For the sake of the state’s long-term economic well-being, ICTSI Oregon, Inc. strongly encourages the ILWU to end its work stoppages,
slowdowns and labor shortages, and increase port productivity to historical levels.

ICTSI Oregon Inc. is a subsidiary of ICTSI, an international operator of common-user container terminals serving the global container shipping industry. ICTSI is the largest port operator in the Philippines and has a portfolio of 29 container terminal operations in 21 countries across six continents.

New management
Since 1 January 2015 Jens A. Scharner as commercial managing director and Dr. Gernot Tesch as managing director operations/ technics are jointly in charge of Hafen-Entwicklungsgesellschaft Rostock mbH.

Double-digit growth at Rostock overseas port
All told, Rostock seaport logged 7,940 port calls by ferry and ro-ro vessels, tankers, freighters and cruise liners last year; of these, ferry vessels alone accounted for 5,650 port calls.

At 24.2 million tonnes (gross) of goods handled in 2014, the port companies in Rostock achieved the fourth best handling result in the 55 year history of the overseas port, recording a plus of 13 percent compared to 2013.

There was strong growth in dry and liquid bulk and ferry cargo and a slight decline in general cargo. “The repeated strong increase in the handling of grain, but also the return of the cement handling to Rostock have turned a good year into a very good year for the seaport”, says Dr. Gernot Tesch.

A bulk handling of 7.1 million tonnes in total meant an increase of 18 percent compared to the previous year. Apart from another increase in grain handling to 3.2 million tonnes the 550.000 tonnes of cement pumped over the edge of the quay also made a significant difference, as did the handling of split gravel, which went up by 260,000 tonnes last year to 444,000 tonnes.

At three million tonnes the handling of liquid goods showed an increase by 500,000 tonnes or 18 percent compared to 2013. Last year higher amounts of naphtha, crude oil and gas oil were handled in Rostock.

The handling of general cargo was slightly on the decline by comparison: 453,000 tonnes were loaded and unloaded, 40,000 tonnes less than in 2013. There were lower amounts in the handling of slabs and pipes and increases in the handling of coils and crane facilities. “Heavy-lift general cargo is increasingly replaced by general cargo with a high value added, such as cranes and wind power plants”, says Dr. Gernot Tesch.

In addition the operator recorded 100% reliability in 2014 with all sailings operating to schedule throughout the year.

Stena Line carried an additional 33,000 passengers in 2014 on the North Sea with a total of 601,000 passengers being transported compared to 568,000 the previous year. This out performs the general upward trend in the British outbound ferry travel market which witnessed a 3.7% increase in passengers travelling to the Continent from mainland Britain. Stena Line concluded its year of North Sea operations with a very positive 8% increase in passengers in December 2014 compared to the same time in 2013.

Lars Olsson, UK General Manager, Stena Line said: “We have witnessed a sustained period of growth over the last few years and it is very gratifying to see this continue in 2014. We offer an exceptional product; to operate at 100% reliability in 2014 is an amazing achievement and we are very pleased to have provided our customers with such a reliable service. Our two super ferries continue to impress old and new customers alike who are continuing to discover our fantastic on-board offering.”

So what is it about this UK port, essentially at the end of the line, that keeps driving major global investment, entrepreneurship, renewables innovation technology and a continually flourishing marine economy as a result?

Falmouth’s famous harbour is the largest in Cornwall and the third deepest natural harbour in the world. The last major investment in building new wharves and quaysides and extending the size of the largest dry dock was in the 1950s. Since then the dockyard’s owners have invested significantly in maintaining the facilities to a high quality and in installing new equipment to keep pace with ever changing technologies.

The marine industry has majorly diversified over the years to include oil bunkering and cargo servicing, along with the building of world-class superyachts which employs around a third of the Dock’s workforce. Specialist ship repair is now the single largest activity in the Falmouth Docks with a turnover of £45 million per year. This activity employs an average of 450 employees with a payroll of £14 million and a supply chain benefiting from £18 million worth of orders for supplies and services, a significant portion of which goes back into the local economy.

The benefits of this lucrative industry are plain to see. Based on a recent survey, the total amount of gross value added to the UK economy (GVA) from the Docks equals to £75 million. The GVA per job at the Falmouth Docks is £53,570, considerably higher than the South West average of £44,350 per FTE job. Based on the GVA per job at the Docks, the net total GVA was £82 million in 2009. This economic value encourages inward investment and allows a diverse mix of creative and artisan businesses, all infused with the spirit of the sea, to thrive in Falmouth.