Chief Executive’s Review

Outlook for 2024

As we look ahead to 2024, we have taken a reasonably conservative view and budgeted for an overall growth rate of 2.4%. The early months of 2024 are likely to remain soft given the current economic and political environment, but we expect to see return to growth later in the year.

Also, when we look to 2024 and beyond our ability to fund the significant capital investment required to deliver on Masterplan 2040 will start to come into focus. This will necessitate us revisiting our 2022-26 Pricing Policy, following a sustained period of inflation, impacting both operating costs and construction costs.

The Company remains focused on the long-term objectives of Masterplan 2040 and our Capital Infrastructure Investment Programme remains an imperative in terms of meeting the long-term requirements of the Irish Economy. Capital investment in 2024 is expected to rise to €71m from €64m in 2023. The investment programme in 2024 will be driven by further development works at Alexandra Basin West and the completion of T4 North as part of the ABR Project, as well as the commencement of construction works at Berths 52 and 53 as part of the MP2.

The shift in RoRo volumes from Great Britain (GB) ports to the longer run European Ports will continue to put increased pressure on Port capacity as volumes on the direct European services are predominantly driver unaccompanied.

As highlighted in the Chairperson’s Report the importance of returning at least half of the 14.6 hectares of Port lands given over to facilitate the border inspection operations of Customs and the Department of Agriculture cannot be overstated as we face into capacity pinch points in the near future.

There is a continual focus on long-term planning in the Company and we will work during the coming year to develop the 3FM Project with a target of lodging a planning application with An Bord Pleanála in 2024.

The 3FM Project is the third and final Masterplan project required to bring Dublin Port to its ultimate capacity by 2040. This project is located on the Poolbeg Peninsula and will deliver c.12m tonnes of capacity. The project will include conversion of the existing LoLo terminal with a RoRo terminal principally to serve unaccompanied RoRo routes to Europe. It will also include delivering a large new LoLo terminal in front of the Poolbeg Power Station. Another key element of the project is the Southern Port Access Route (SPAR) which will provide a dedicated link from Poolbeg to the Dublin Port Tunnel.

Responding to climate change is at the centre of our plans for 2024. In 2022 the Board adopted the Climate Action Framework for the Commercial Semi-State (CSS) Sector and approved the climate action targets and the five-commitment approach to achieving targets set for 2030. During 2024 we will continue the work undertaken to date identifying the potential impacts of climate change on the Port’s North and South walls and the mitigation measures required. There is a need for ongoing and active engagement with other stakeholders to look at the possible impact of climate change on ongoing and future Port developments and planning. During 2023 we switched our pilot boats to Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) fuel. These boats contribute up to 20% of our carbon emissions and is in line with our commitment towards Ireland’s Public Sector Energy targets, which states the public sector must improve its energy efficiency by 50% before 2030.

The developments envisaged in Masterplan 2040 are an essential driver in providing the Port capacity required to facilitate future economic growth. However, infrastructure is not sufficient in itself and measures will be required to change supply chain practices so as to increase utilisation of the capacity being developed. This applies in particular to landside operations where two challenges need to be addressed.

Firstly, the movement of goods by HGV needs to become truly 24 / 7 and current demand peaks will have to be flattened.

Secondly, the land area of Dublin Port is fixed, and the faster cargo moves through the Port, the greater its capacity. In this regard dwell times of trailers and containers need to be greatly reduced. The above considerations drive the necessity to use digitalisation and data analysis as an enabler for increasing the efficiency of Port operations and we remain committed to work in close collaboration with our customers at the Port to achieve same.

The health and safety of everybody who works in or uses Dublin Port remains an absolute priority. Dublin SafePort is a Port-wide initiative launched in 2022 to enhance safety culture and practice for all workers in Dublin Port. The initiative is the collaboration between Dublin Port Company, the Gardaí, HSE and Customs and Revenue and the seven Terminal Operators. The initiative looks to standardise safety practices and procedures across the 260-hectare port estate. During the year we launched the SafePort Golden Rules, a set of 10 rules designed to enable Port Management and the seven Terminal Operators to engage with employees and visitors in the safest possible manner on Dublin Port sites and promote a culture of safety-first behaviour. The publication follows the introduction of a ‘new Dublin SafePort initiative’ in July 2022 and the introduction of 40km speed limits within the Port in October 2022. We look forward to continuing our work together as a team under Dublin SafePort in 2024.