Napier Port has put in place a range of measures to address congestion issues that struck during this year's peak export season, but says it will require fruitgrower assistance to ensure similar problems don't recur next year.
In March, the port processed a record volume of containers - more than 32,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) - and it expects volumes will jump again to between 35,000 and 37,000 TEUs during next year's peak month.
This year's record freight levels led to frustration among fruit exporters with long truck queues at the port gates, delivery delay, and in some cases missed shipments.
But port chief executive Garth Cowie told the Hawke's Bay Regional Council this week the company had taken several steps to deal with last summer's congestion issues, including hiring more container administration staff and hoist drivers, bringing in additional moving equipment and increasing the hours when full containers could be dropped off and empties collected.
While trucks had previously been able to drop off full containers in the evening, they had not been able to collect empties after-hours. They were now able to drop off and collect until 11pm.
The port was also developing a 7.2ha property at Thames St, Pandora, as an empty depot site which would become fully operational next month.
"If, first thing in the morning, 80 trucks turn up [at the gate], we will still have congestion, but hopefully we'll process them quicker," Mr Cowie told the regional council's corporate and strategic committee.
"I'm confident that what we've put in place is the best we can get in place for the year ahead but there are no guarantees that it [congestion] won't happen again.
"We're working on some voluntary commitments from the pipfruit industry to move volumes to outside the normal 7 to 5 timeframe to use those extra hours. If that doesn't eventuate we could end up having similar problems."
The introduction of another planned measure to reduce congestion at the gate, an electronic vehicle booking system, had been delayed until June next year.
"That is one way of managing demand through the gate and if we'd put that in place the answer would be a little bit more concrete but we've taken the assurances from the pipfruit industry and we'll work with the other industry parties to move volumes outside those peak hours, to try to use those extended hours that we have to the maximum."
The growth in volumes through the port had a healthy impact on the company's finances.
Container volumes for the year to the end of September were up 7 per cent on the previous year to about 220,000 TEUs. The tonnage of non-containerised goods passing through the port was also up about 3 per cent.
This had resulted in an 8 per cent increase in annual revenue, from $62 million to $67 million.
The company is due to release its full annual financial result on Monday, which Mr Cowie said would show an increase in net profit. Last year's profit was $11.8 million.
Because container volumes were forecast to rise to about 270,000 TEUs during the 2014-15 year, the port had brought forward some expansion plans.
Napier Port is the country's fourth largest container terminal after Auckland, Tauranga and Lyttelton, and handles more than 10 per cent of New Zealand's export trade by volume.
The port is owned by the regional council.