The ACCC has released draft determinations proposing to grant Bulk Cargo Services Pty Ltd (BCS) and Wagner Corporation Pty Ltd (Wagner Corp) exempt service provider status under the Port Terminal Access (Bulk Wheat) Code of Conduct in relation to their respective Pinkenba port terminal facilities.
An exemption would mean that BCS and Wagner Corp will not be required to comply with Parts 3 to 6 of the code when providing port terminal services at their respective facilities at Pinkenba.
The ACCC considers that as new entrants BCS and Wagner Corp face a high level of competitive constraint from competing port terminal facilities at the Port of Brisbane. The ACCC therefore considers that BCS and Wagner Corp have incentives to provide fair and transparent access to port terminal services at their respective Pinkenba facilities.
The ACCC invites interested parties to provide submissions in response to these draft determinations and will consider any submissions received prior to reaching a final view. The closing date for submissions is 23 November 2022.
View the ACCC’s draft determinations.
Background
The Port Terminal Access (Bulk Wheat) Code of Conduct commenced on 30 September 2014 and regulates bulk grain port terminal service providers to ensure that exporters have fair and transparent access to port terminal services.
Exempt service providers are not required to comply with obligations in Parts 3 to 6 of the code, including obligations not to discriminate against or hinder other exporters when providing access to port terminal services, or to submit port capacity allocation systems for ACCC approval. They are still required to deal with exporters in good faith and publish certain information, including a port loading statement and port loading procedures.