Govt urged to contract local firms

 THE Government has been urged to give preference to landowner companies in regards to terminal management at the new Lae Port Tidal Basin.

Representatives of landowner companies from the Labu and Ahi villages of Lae made the call on Tuesday after announcing that they had joined forces to create a new joint-venture company.

The two companies, Labu Holdings Ltd and Ahi Holdings Ltd, have formed a new JV called Morobe International Terminal Ltd to bid for terminal management at the new Lae Port Tidal Basin.

Labu Holdings and Ahi Holdings have a stranglehold on stevedoring at the Lae Port through their respective partnerships with Steamships Trading Company Ltd and Consort Shipping Ltd.

Ahi Investment chairman and Riback operations manager George Gware told The National that the two companies also combined in 2013 to stop a foreign stevedoring company, Patricks, from starting operations at Lae port.

“Last month, when the tidal project was completed, there was this talk about government appointing a new (terminal) operator,” he said.

“Finally, we saw in the adverts in the papers, that they’re now talking about expressions of interest for an international company to come in and set up in Lae and in Motukea.

“Even though we’ve got Morobe International Terminal at the current Lae Port, whoever that new operator is that comes into the Tidal Port, what will happen is that we will all compete for the same cargo volumes coming through.