Selwyn Times: October 18, 2016

SELWYN TIMES Tuesday October 18 2016 11
News
MidlandPort officially opened
LYTTELTON PORT of
Christchurch celebrated its
new ‘inland port’ at Rolleston
with an official opening
ceremony on Friday.
Selwyn MP Amy Adams
cut the ribbon at the opening
of MidlandPort, which began
operating in June.
The facility was built to handle
container freight travelling
between Lyttelton and other
South Island locations and to
future-proof the port company’s
transport connections
for Canterbury’s trade growth.
It is one of two inland ports
in Rolleston, with the Port
of Tauranga having opened
MetroPort in the Izone business
park last year.
LPC chairman Trevor Burt
said MidlandPort saved a journey
to Lyttelton for customers
working with the eight shipping
services and 14 shipping
lines that visited the port.
“It is strategically positioned
at the intersection of major
transport routes, with rail
access to all points west and
south of Rolleston,” Mr Burt
said.
“It also services the increasing
productivity from the
Canterbury Plains. Irrigation
is boosting exports such as dry
and refrigerated dairy, frozen
meat and vegetables.
“In central Canterbury,
60,000 hectares of mostly
dryland farms will be transformed
by the Central Plains
Irrigation Scheme. That will
increase agricultural output by
about $264 million a year.”
Mr Burt said the facility was
also improving travel time for
freight transport and helping
reduce road congestion.
“Each round trip rail service
takes up to 80 truck trips off
our roads. This is a positive
step as our city focuses on improving
transport efficiency,”
he said.
“Already we have welcomed
major customers such as
Westland Milk Products and
The Warehouse on board. We
are managing hundreds of
containers here every week
and volumes have tripled since
we opened.”
MidlandPort was a vital part
of LPC’s planning to be ready
for a forecast 50 per cent increase
in exports and imports
in the next nine years.
“As trade grows so do the
size of the cargo vessels.
We must be ready to
accommodate bigger ships
that will carry more cargo,”
DOING THE HONOURS: Amy Adams speaks at the opening
of MidlandPort on Friday, while Mayor Sam Broughton
(below left) talks to LPC chief executive Peter Davie.
PHOTO: TONY STEWART ​
Mr Burt said.
“We have had a 50 per
cent increase in container
volumes in the last five years.
We handle in excess of half
the South Island’s container
volume, including more than
70 per cent of imports.”
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