Picture: stock
THE Maritime Union of Australia has hit out at the federal government for funding the automation of Flinders Port Holding’s (FPH) Adelaide container terminal.
The Federal Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) is giving $70m to Flinders Port for electrification work across seven South Australian ports.
CEFC CEO Ian Learmonth says the work will pave the way for decarbonisation at 70 ports across the country.
“Stevedoring operations are traditionally difficult to abate and as both an owner and operator of multiple ports, FPH is in a unique position to catalyse change.
“The actions taken by FPH place it at the forefront of the industry, giving it a competitive edge as the world transitions to net zero emissions.”
The union (MUA) says otherwise.
“The CEFC seems to think that highly productive human operated straddle carriers can be replaced by Automated Rubber Tyre Gantry (ARTG) cranes at the Flinders Adelaide Container Terminal,” says MUA deputy national secretary Warren Smith.
“This is not an investment in decarbonisation. It is an investment in cutting jobs,” he says.
SA branch secretary Brett Larkin says the option of electrified human operated straddle carriers should have been considered.
“It must be done in a manner which is socially and economically useful rather than using decarbonisation as a smokescreen for union busting and job cuts,” he claimed.
Mr Smith claims automation will deliver a less productive waterfront with a lower taxation base and more unemployment.
“Every instance of waterfront automation has resulted in lower productivity outcomes coupled with the increased risk of cyber-security issues which have plagued automated ports and have cause global disruptions on many occasions,” he says.
The MUA has expressed their concerns to Energy Minister Chris Bowen and asked him to direct the CEFC not to spend public money on automating ports at the expense of communities and jobs.
CEFC Head of Infrastructure Julia Hinwood says that making “the transition to cleaner port operations and vessel technologies requires considerable investment in new infrastructure, potentially disrupting established shipping practices and posing significant financial challenges”.
“By helping finance this important decarbonisation work, we are demonstrating a credible pathway for ports and port operators to reduce emissions and remain competitive, while protecting this critical sector of the economy,” she says.
Australia has signed up to International Maritime Organisation efforts to decarbonise shipping; the IMO wants to reduce total annual greenhouse gas emissions from shipping by at least 50 per cent by 2050.
