Back-to-back records for port
The number of cars handled by Lyttelton Port Company (LPC) came in at 39,138 for the year ended June 30, an increase of 11 per cent from the 35,2333 units in the previous financial year.
The figures come as the company announced a record net profit after tax (NPAT) of $35 million in the 2026 financial year, a jump of 40 per cent jump from $25m in the prior period.
It means LPC has posted a record financial result for the second year in a row.
The result was underpinned by revenue of $226m, up by nine per cent, contributing to earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $77m, which climbed 22 per cent. The result is subject to final audit clearance.
Barry Bragg, LPC chairman, says the past financial year showed the value of a disciplined focus on the company’s performance.
“This is a result our people can be proud of, and it would not have been possible without the support of our staff and customers,” he adds.
“Our job now is to keep lifting returns so we can reinvest in the port, support its long-term growth and become the South Island port hub.”
Bragg, pictured, says safety remains the board’s foremost priority alongside efficiency and productivity for customers.
“The board is determined to make real gains in health and safety. Our plan spans stronger leadership, better work practices and asset upgrades, all aimed at keeping our people well and our operation safe.”
Container volumes for the year held steady at 427,462 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units), down less than one per cent on the 431,556 TEU handled in the 2025 financial year.
General cargo was positive with grain, fertiliser and stockfeed volumes strong on the back of favourable conditions in the agricultural sector.
Total bulk trades were up nine per cent to 3,830,379 tonnes, which included the increase in car volumes as well as dry bulk climbing 19 per cent, coal going up by 14 per cent and bulk fuel rising three per cent.
Log exports were down 17 per cent, held back by high shipping costs that led to cargo being stockpiled or sent to the domestic market.
Graeme Sumner, LPC chief executive, says the company has worked hard to improve its operational performance and keep a tight rein on capital and operating costs.
“Just as important, we have done this while rolling out a wide-ranging risk management programme to bring down our operational, health and safety risks across the business,” he adds.
During the year, LPC paid a total of $12.5m in dividends, including a final dividend of $7.7m from the 2025 financial and an interim dividend for 2026 of $4.8m. The company is on track to deliver a full-year dividend of $14.5m to Christchurch City Holdings Limited, subject to board approval.
LPC notes it met each of its 2025/26 sustainability targets, delivering on its solid waste to landfill goal and its scope one and two greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal.
The progress keeps the company moving towards its wider ambition of halving scope one and two emissions and cutting selected scope three emissions by 30 per cent by 2030.
