Delegates and guests at the conference dinner can look forward not only to enjoying excellent food and wine but also a presentation by Vincent Tremaine, CEO of Flinders Ports and ‘Cyclist, Iron Man and Intrepid Trekker’ as he talks about the “Challenge of The Himalayas”.

Key companies sponsoring and/or exhibiting at the Conference include:

Platinum Sponsors: Adelaide Airport Ltd, Flinders Ports.
Premium Sponsors: ABB Grain Ltd, Schenker, NT Government / Port of Darwin.
Major Sponsors: Hamburg Sud, Maunsell, Ports Corporation of Queensland (PCQ), Strang, DP World.
General Sponsors and/or Exhibitors: Australian airExpress, the South Australian Road Transport Association, Clark Equipment, Genesee and Wyoming, Sud Chemie, Asiaworld Shipping and Nordiko, Newcastle Port Corporation, the Transport Training Centre, Peter Lehmann of the Barossa and CleanSeas from Port Lincoln.
Conference Partners: ICHCA Australia, South Australian Freight Council, Department of Trade and Economic Development, Centre for Innovation, Department for Transport Energy and Infrastructure and Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

Delegates will find ample free car parking at the function’s venue which is located five minutes from the Adelaide Airport, five minutes from attractive sea-side Glenelg and only 15 minutes from the CBD.

The Masters Games are being held in Adelaide from the October 5-14 so if you bring a partner who does not want to attend the Conference, they might be interested in the games, playing golf at the course next to the Function Centre, shopping, exploring the multiplicity of wineries close to Adelaide or just relaxing by the beach and enjoying South Australia’s wide array of fresh and unique foods and wines.

It is suggested delegates book soon if they need accommodation.

The Conference has been attractively priced:

• ICHCA members 2-day registration (includes dinner) $440
• Non-members 2-day registration (includes dinner) $605
• Dinner only ICHCA Member $137, non-members $192
• One day only (dinner not included) $302.

Register online - see details of the Conference Program and see the accommodation hints at: http://mybookingmanager.com/ichca.

For more information contact Ian Lovell, Conference Coordinator
-on +61 [0] 400 708 182
-at ian.lovell@bigpond.com  
- at 9 Durham Street, Henley Beach South Australia 5022.

We look forward to seeing you at the ICHCA and SAFC 2007 Conference Exhibition.

ICHCA Discusses Issues with Senior Canberra Policy Makers

ICHCA Australia’s Board held discussions in Canberra last week with senior representatives from a range of Federal Government departments and agencies. The annual event is an integral part of maintaining ICHCA’s contact with senior government policy makers on key cargo issues. ICHCA Australia Chairman, John Strang, said the discussions were extremely useful. “It gives both Government and industry representatives the chance to not only exchange information but also to gain a better understanding of current and future cargo issues and policy directions”, he said. ICHCA Australia is vitally interested in improvements across all modes and along the whole supply chain. This year’s discussions follow on from last year’s event with a greater emphasis on trade freight links. Federal organisations which took part were the Department of Transport and Regional Services (DOTARS, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Austrade, Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), Australian Customs Service and Australian Quarantine Inspection Service (AQIS). The outcome of the discussions will be reported in the next Inside ICHCA.

Helen Monro, Austrade, Nic Browne, DFAT, Ken Fitzpatrick AsiaWorld Shipping, Brad Fish PCQ and David Bendall, Maritrade

ICHCA Publication Changes

Asian Gypsy Moth Warning Issued

AQIS has released a warning following a recent notification from the Russian authorities of an increased number of Asian Gypsy Moth (AGM) in the forests surrounding Russian Far East ports and to remind agents of the reporting and certification requirements for vessels arriving into Australia from these ports.

AGM is an exotic pest to Australia which, if it became established, could devastate forests causing major environmental and economic damage. The most likely mode of introduction of AGM into Australia is from egg masses that have been deposited on vessels, on their cargo and containers and the hatching larvae travelling to shore by ‘ballooning’ or being blown by winds to shore.

Assessing the risk of a vessel introducing AGM is determined by AQIS officers analysing responses to a series of questions on the Quarantine Pre-Arrival Report (QPAR). Vessels that have visited a Russian Far East port between 40°N and 60°N and east of 147°E during any period between 1 July and 30 September in the past two years and do not have a Certificate of Freedom from Gypsy Moth are high risk for AGM.

High risk vessels are not granted quarantine clearance until the vessel has been inspected and cleared of AGM, if applicable. Vessels that are considered high risk will be inspected, although random inspections of vessels with a Certificate of Freedom from Gypsy Moth (which are required to be forwarded to AQIS) are made to verify the accuracy of the certification.

Great Freight Task Recommendations

The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Transport and Regional Services report entitled The Great Freight Task: Is Australia’s Transport Network up to the Challenge? is now available on the net at www.aph.gov.au/committee/trs/networks/report.htm .

The report addresses the question of just how deficient is the supporting infrastructure across Australia and whether Australia’s transport network is up to the challenge. It makes clear that meeting the challenge is all about integration as it is impossible to divorce one form of transport infrastructure or connectivity from another.

The report’s 25 recommendations include COAG establishing Australia-wide standards for the approval of port dredging projects with a view to a co-ordinated and timely approach to achieving critical depth upgrades. It also recommends that the Federal Government assist the Port of Melbourne to complete its channel deepening project as soon as possible.

Advertise in Inside ICHCA Special rates are available to ICHCA members to advertise in Inside ICHCA. For non-members rates are still highly affordable. Want to know more? Contact Ian Lovell, National Secretary on ian.lovell@bigpond.com.au

Waterline: Latest Cargo Figures Available

The latest edition of Waterline from the Department of Transport and Regional Services has recently been released and is available online at www.btre.gov.au/waterline/wline.aspx . The major findings were:

• The five port total of containers moved (excluding bulk runs) increased from 633,922 in the September quarter 2006 to 661,441 in the December quarter 2006, an increase of 4.3 %.

• The five port average container turnaround time was 25 minutes in the September quarter 2006 and 25.5 minutes in the December quarter 2006.

• The five port total of truck bookings increased from 425,706 in the September quarter 2006 to 441,668 in the December quarter 2006, an increase of 3.7%

• The five port average truck turnaround time was 37.3 minutes in the September quarter 2006 and 38.2 minutes in the December quarter 2006.

• In July-December 2006, total cargo throughput was 61.2 million tonnes and total container traffic was 2.687 million teus.

• The five port average crane rate decreased from 27 containers per hour in the September quarter 2006 to 26.8 containers per hour in the December quarter 2006.

• The five port average vessel working rate has increased from 35.2 containers per hour in the September quarter 2006 to 36.1 in the December quarter 2006.

• The five port total of container moves increased from 864,475 in the September quarter 2006 to 923,755 in the December quarter 2006.

• The national port interface cost index for exporting a container was $611/teu in 2001 constant prices for July-December 2006. This is the same price level as for January-June 2006.

• The tonnage of cargo estimated to be moved under coastal permits has increased from 14.973 million tonnes in the calendar year 2005 to 14.989 million tonnes for the calendar year 2006.

• Total ship visits increased by 11% to 4,304 in the year ended 31 December 2006 .