The Tribune

* New cargo carrier signals 2021 call interest

* Bahamian stay-at-home hits cargo volumes

* Arawak Port profits off 30% year-over-year

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Nassau Container Port's top executive yesterday said Bahamian cargo shipping rates could be impacted "for the better" in early 2021 after a major carrier signalled its plans to service this market.

Dion Bethell, Arawak Port Development Company's (APD) president and chief financial officer, told Tribune Business that CMA/CGM, the French transportation company, had voiced interest in one of its vessels calling on Nassau in the New Year.

"In recent weeks we've had some expression from CMA/CGM, one of the largest carriers in the world," he revealed. "They're definitely in the top five. They've expressed interest in having a vessel call here to Nassau, certainly in the New Year.

"It would be very interesting to see how that plays into shipping rates. The existing carriers will be focused on maintaining market share. The pie is still the same but part of it may be moving to another carrier. There's a possibility there may be an adjustment in shipping rates for the better."

Such developments could provide a modest piece of good news for Bahamian businesses and consumers battered by COVID-19, as it will help to ease import-related cost pressures by introducing extra competition to a Bahamian cargo freight market that is largely dominated by Tropical Shipping and Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC).

Mr Bethell, meanwhile, said APD had no plans to increase or adjust its own tariff rates as he disclosed that the normal influx of freight associated with Thanksgiving purchases by Bahamians in the US had failed to materialise this year to fewer persons travelling as a result of COVID-19.

"As it relates to volumes, they aren't what they were pre-COVID or at this time last year," he said. "A lot of Bahamians travel for Thanksgiving, and have a lot of cargo they send back by ocean freight as well as bring with them.

"The items they send back by ocean freight, we did not see the cargo volumes this year because not many Bahamians travelled for Thanksgiving this year." However, the APD chief said the Arawak Cay-based port had "seen some uptick in perishable cargos" as wholesalers such as Bahamas Food Services and others prepared for the hotel industry's ongoing re-opening.

Cautioning that APD's November numbers were preliminary, Mr Bethell told this newspaper: "When you look at July to November this calendar year, and compare it against the prior year, we're down by 18 percent on revenues.

"That's a preliminary November; we've not closed it yet. We're under budget on our expenses by about 20 percent. That is primarily driven because there's a corresponding expense reduction with volumes related to our government lease.

"The Government lease is tied to a twenty-foot equivalent (TEU) component, so with container volumes down there is a corresponding expense reduction that largely drives our expenses being down."

Mr Bethell said net earnings for the period were down about 30 percent year-over-year, and added: "Our TEU volumes are down 16 percent for July to November 2020. Our bulk tonnage performance is down by about 23 percent, and vehicle volumes were down about 40 percent for the year July to November."

APD has also seen increased imports of furniture, fixtures and equipment moving across its wharves associated with The Pointe, as it readies to open, together with sheet pile and construction materials associated with the Nassau cruise port redevelopment, "but not sufficient to make up the pre-COVID gap that has been left.