CONTAINER landside charges should be determined via negotiation, rather than imposed as non-contestable costs on exporters, Grain Trade Australia says.
GTA was commenting following the release last week of the ACCC’s Container Stevedoring Monitoring Report 2024-25.
Chief executive Pat O’Shannassy said the findings closely aligned with the experience of containerised grain exporters.
"It is encouraging to see the ACCC acknowledge the scale and incontestability of landside charges and access fees, including those imposed by empty container parks, which our members have been raising for some time,” Mr O’Shannassy said.
He said the GTA supported scrutiny of the sector, but cautioned against prescriptive approaches that failed to reflect commercial realities.
“Any response needs to recognise the highly dynamic nature of global trade,” Mr O’Shannassy said.
“Rigid pricing mechanisms, including formal annualised price setting, often embed excessive risk premiums into fees.”
Fees and charges, including landside fees, should, he said, align with commercial contracting arrangements across the supply chain, ensuring those who pay the fees could negotiate service productivity.
“This is currently not the case with grain container exporters,” Mr O’Shannassy said.
“In our view, exporters should be able to contract directly with shipping lines for services, and shipping lines should then negotiate and contract landside services with stevedores and container parks, as they can apply commercial and operational pressure to ensure efficiency.”
Mr O’Shannassy said pricing “through negotiation by parties who can influence service levels and productivity outcomes, rather than being imposed as non-contestable costs on exporters”.
“This will lead to a more efficient and productive sector,” he said.
“We are calling on government and industry stakeholders to consider this proposed reform.”
While grain is typically considered a bulk commodity, a significant proportion (between 10% and 15%) is exported in containers, with higher volumes in Victoria.
The GTA has said it would continue to engage with regulators and industry stakeholders on measures that improve contestability and efficiency across Australia’s container freight supply chain.
The Container Stevedore Monitoring Report can be viewed here.