Chairperson's Statement

Trade and Financial Review

As expected 2021 proved to be a very challenging year for Dublin Port Company with the twin issues of Covid-19 and Brexit featuring heavily for the second year in a row.

At the end of Quarter 1 throughput volumes were over 15% lower than the corresponding period in 2020, impacted by Covid-19 lockdown measures and the significant stockpiling that had taken place at the end of 2020 in the run up to Brexit. Over the course of the rest of the year trade patterns began to normalise and trade was down by just 5.2% as at year end.

While the unitised trade saw a decline of 6.6%, the non-unitised trade increased by 2.1% over the previous year, driven by an increase in petroleum imports, as the economy opened up.

The impact of Brexit is evidenced by the significant changes we have seen in trade flows through the port. In the first instance we have seen a shift within the unitised modes with overall RoRo trade down by 11.8% in tonnage terms to 21.1m tonnes while LoLo trade increased by 11.0% to 7.9m tonnes.

In addition there has been a shift from traditional GB trade routes to direct Continental services. In 2021 the GB share of unitised trade fell from 64% pre-Brexit to 52% post-Brexit, while the EU share of unitised trade increased from 36% to 48%.

Looked at in terms of the overall number of units handled through the port , total unit volumes of RoRo and LoLo combined fell by only 3.8% from 1,484,894 units to 1,428,812 units, a reduction of just 56,082 units.

Over the course of 2019 and 2020 Dublin Port Company allocated 14.6 hectares of port land to State agencies in order to meet their requirements for Brexit related facilities.

Thankfully, the State Services of Revenue and Department of Health have been successful in implementation of the new post Brexit working arrangements and the lands which the Company has allocated for their requirements are significantly under-utilised with only 3.3% of trailers shipped requiring physical inspection of cargo.

The unavailability of these lands for the transit storage of cargo will have a significant impact on the port’s capacity in the future and we will continue to engage with the OPW and the relevant state agencies throughout 2022 with a view to returning a portion of the lands in question to the port in order to support future growth.

The robust performance in throughput terms was matched by a strong financial performance. While throughput volumes were 5.2% lower, total revenue was just 1.0% lower at €85.8m.

Operating Profit was €8.7m (19.8%) lower at €35.4m largely as a result of a €2.9m increase in the depreciation charge (reflecting the significant on-going investment in port infrastructure) and an increase of €3.7m in city rates (as a result of the Covid-19 waiver applied in 2020 and not repeated in 2021).

Profit for the year amounted to €26.0m, a reduction of €8.3m (24.1%) on the previous year.

A comprehensive overview of the Trading and Financial performance is set out in the Chief Executive’s Review and the Directors Report.

Dublin Inland Port

In January 2022, after €48m investment to date, Dublin Port Company opened the initial phase of Dublin Inland Port when Dublin Ferryport Terminals commenced operation of a 5 ha state of the art empty container depot.

Masterplan 2040 – Reviewed 2018

Dublin Port Company is required under the Harbours Acts and National Port Policy to provide the port infrastructure needed to facilitate Ireland’s international trade. In this regard Dublin Port’s position as the main gateway for international trade has been undiminished by the impacts of Covid-19 and Brexit and the Board remains focussed on ensuring the timely delivery of port capacity to meet the economic needs of the country over the long term.

The Company’s capital investment programme is underpinned by Masterplan 2040 – Reviewed 2018 which presents a vision for the future development of the Port consistent with our throughput volume projections and critically examines how the existing land use at Dublin Port can be optimised

The Masterplan has been prepared by DPC in order to:

Plan for future sustainable growth and changes in facilitating seaborne trade in goods and passenger movements to and from Ireland and the Dublin region in particular.
Provide an overall context for future investment decisions.
Reflect and provide for current national and regional policies, local guidelines and initiatives.
Ensure there is harmony and synergy between the plans for the Port and those for the Dublin Docklands Area, Dublin City and neighbouring counties within the Greater Dublin Area.
Give certainty to customers about how the Port will develop in the future to meet their requirements.

The Masterplan, which was prepared following extensive engagement with stakeholders, also outlines how DPC will work to better integrate the Port with the City and people of Dublin.

Strategic Infrastructure Development Projects envisaged under the Masterplan

In order to deliver the full vision of the Masterplan it is envisaged that we will need to implement three large scale Strategic Infrastructure Development Projects (SIDs) and our focus to date has been on the first two of the projects required – the Alexandra Basin Redevelopment Project and the MP2 Project.

Alexandra Basin Redevelopment Project

The developments include the deepening and extension of existing quay walls, the provision of a new 250 metres long RoRo jetty together with two new RoRo berths within the inner basin, infill of the basin at berths 52/53, the construction of a new river berth and dredging of the navigational channel to a depth of 10m below chart datum.

MP2 Project

In July 2020, An Bord Pleanála granted a 15 year planning permission for the MP2 Project, the second of the three SIDs required to deliver Masterplan 2040.

This permission will allow the construction of two berths with an overall length of 545 metres for LoLo container ships and two berths with a combined length of 572 metres for RoRo ferries. The project will include the redevelopment of one of the existing oil jetties to provide an additional berth for container ships as and when the demand for fossil fuels permanently reduces in response to national climate change policies.

Between the ABR Project, which is under construction, and the MP2 Project, with construction commencing in 2022, Dublin Port Company has now secured all of the planning permissions required for the major development works planned on the northern side of the port under Masterplan 2040 and our focus now has shifted to plan for implementation of the third SID envisaged under the Masterplan – the 3FM project.

3FM Project

In November 2021 the Company launched the 3FM Project, the third and final Masterplan project needed to complete the development of Dublin Port and bring it to its ultimate and final capacity by 2040.

The 3FM Project will deliver 20% of the capacity required by 2040 by way of a new LoLo terminal capable of handling 360,000 containers per annum and a new RoRo terminal capable of handling 288,000 freight trailers per annum. The Project will be delivered on approximately one-fifth of Dublin Port’s lands located on the Poolbeg Peninsula at an estimated cost of €400m.

The Project is at the pre-planning stage and it is envisaged that the Company will lodge a planning application with An Bord Pleanála in early 2023. The Company is now preparing the detailed project design and environmental impact reports required for large infrastructure projects and continues to engage with all stakeholders on all aspects of the project.

The project has six elements:

A new private road called the Southern Port Access Route (SPAR) to link the north and south port areas, taking HGV’s off the public road via a new bridge across the River Liffey immediately east of the Tom Clarke Bridge, giving pedestrians, cyclists and public transport users a less congested route for active travel across the city.
The construction of a new container terminal in front of the ESB’s Poolbeg Power Station with an annual throughput capacity of 360,000 containers (approximately 612,000 twenty foot equivalent units).
The redevelopment of the existing container terminal to create a new RoRo freight terminal with an annual throughput capacity of 288,000 freight trailers.
Creation of a 325 metre diameter ship turning circle in front of Pigeon House Harbour.
Development of 6.1 hectares (15.1 acres) of new public parks in three locations on the Poolbeg Peninsula to provide community gain.
Provision of a 1 hectare site to accommodate utilities needed, firstly for the City’s district heating scheme powered by the Covanta waste to energy plant and, secondly, to accommodate a range of utilities for the Pembroke at Dublin Four development.

Dublin Port Post 2040 Dialogue

In my Review last year I reported extensively on the Dublin Port Post 2040 Dialogue initiative which the Company launched in 2020. The debate in relation to this matter is of critical importance in terms of ensuring that essential port capacity is available along the east coast after Dublin Port reaches full capacity and for this reason I believe it is important to repeat the key points again in this Report.

We know from experience that twenty years is a relatively short period of time in the context of delivering large scale infrastructure projects and it is vital, therefore, that we continue to plan now, so that long-term development of essential port infrastructure can continue to take place in a timely, sustainable fashion.

Over the course of seven papers, the Company has sought to explain and contextualise the challenges ahead in planning the long-term delivery of port capacity to meet future demand on the east coast of Ireland by 2040, or sooner.

In analysing the issues covered by the papers, the Company has reached six key conclusions:

Dublin Port Company must complete all of the projects outlined in Masterplan 2040 to deliver infrastructure with an annual throughput capacity of 77 million gross tonnes by 2040.
Critically, this will require planning permission to be secured for the third and final Masterplan Project, known as the 3FM Project.
The achievement of a throughput of 77 million gross tonnes per annum by 2040 will require not only the completion of all of the infrastructure projects in Masterplan 2040; it will also require that the efficiency of port operations greatly increases so that port infrastructure is utilised to its maximum. This will require the elimination of systemic inefficiencies in existing supply chain operations.
Over the next 20 years, additional capacity at other existing east coast ports will be required so that, as Dublin Port approaches its ultimate capacity, volumes which Dublin cannot handle can be accommodated elsewhere.
During these 20 years, Dublin Port Company will need to work on the DP1.5 project so that it can be brought through the planning process and construction started by about 2033 should that become necessary.
The projects to provide additional capacity in other ports and the project to construct DP1.5 can only be realised with State support – none of the projects and none of the port companies (including Dublin Port Company) are capable of raising the project finance that would be required.

Berth 35

This project involved constructing 133m of new quay wall at the southern end of Ocean Pier, directly on the Liffey Channel. It provides easily accessible berthage for smaller car carriers and bulk vessels.

Underpinning the views expressed in the papers is more than a decade’s worth of knowledge, expertise, scientific and environmental data acquired within the Company through the delivery of major infrastructure projects in Dublin Port.

However, we recognise that alternative viewpoints exist including a long-held view that Dublin Port should be moved from its current location.

The purpose, therefore, of publishing the Dublin Port Post 2040 Dialogue papers is to initiate and facilitate informed discussion and substantive engagement on key questions that require answers at this pivotal moment, namely:

What level of port capacity will have to be provided to meet future demand on the east coast of Ireland over the next 20 years?
Where will this additional capacity be provided?
How will the projects needed to deliver this additional capacity be financed and delivered?

Open to anyone with an interest in the long-term planning and development of both the Port and the City, we have invited those who wish to challenge the Company’s thinking and development path to date to respond and share their thoughts so that informed decisions can be taken on the future development of port infrastructure both in Dublin Port and elsewhere on the east coast compatible with relevant plans and strategies within the national planning hierarchy.

Conclusion

I would like to thank the management team and all the staff of Dublin Port Company for their continued commitment over the course of what has been another challenging year. The manner in which everybody continued to work through the challenges of Covid-19 and Brexit while remaining focussed on the long term objectives and strategy set by the Board has been exceptional.

It has been an equally challenging period over the last two years for all our customers and stakeholders and I would like to thank them for their continued support.

I wish to thank the Minister and the dedicated staff at the Department of Transport for their active engagement with us over the course of 2021.

I wish to thank my colleagues on the Board for their work over the past year and welcome our two new board members, Ms. Denise Cronin and Dr. Berna Grist, who were appointed to the Board by the Minister in January 2022.

Finally, I would like to thank the Chief Executive, Eamonn O’Reilly, for his outstanding service to Dublin Port Company.

It was with great regret that in February 2022 we announced that Eamonn is departing the Company after he informed the Board of his decision to leave at the end of August 2022.

Eamonn has held the position of Chief Executive since 2010 and over the past twelve years the Company’s business volumes have grown by one quarter and profits by more than one-third. Under Eamonn’s leadership, the strategic direction of the Company has been transformed. Eamonn devised the concept of, and has been the driving force behind the 30-year Masterplan for Dublin Port which has provided a long-term blueprint for port development and, within that, the need for a transformation in the relationship between the Port and the City. The success in achieving this essential strategic objective has resulted in new and diverse cultural, heritage and community initiatives to strengthen this important link. He has overseen capital investment of €500 million in nationally critical port infrastructure and there is now a pipeline of projects and finance in place to allow development to continue to bring Dublin Port towards its ultimate capacity by 2040.

I and the Board are very sorry to see Eamonn depart. We are very grateful to him for his professionalism since taking on the role in 2010 and we wish him every success in the next phase of his career.

Jerry Grant, Chairperson

25th March 2022