History of the Ports Authority

The Ports Authority of the Velocity Interoperability Network is a young institution, but the ports it manages are not. The milestones below record the bringing together of four separately run ports into a single authority, the Authority's establishment on 6 September 2026, and the work now in prospect. They will be extended as the Authority's terminals and services come into operation.

1. Before August 2026

   Ports run separately by their member organisations

   Before the Authority existed, each of the four ports was run by the member organisation that had built it. Southbank, Northgate, Meridian Basin and Westbrook kept their own tariffs, their own handling rules and their own arrangements for pilotage, and an agent working at more than one port dealt with each of them separately. There was no common tally, no shared record of vessel movements and no single harbour master.

2. 10 August 2026

   The transition period begins

   The four ports began to operate under interim arrangements while their terminals, plant, staff and records were transferred to the Authority in formation. The interim arrangements held the existing tariffs in force, brought the four harbour masters' logs into a single record, and required agents to register with the Authority in readiness for establishment.

3. 10 August to 5 September 2026

   Transfer of terminals, staff and records

   Seven terminals, seventeen berths and 3,540 metres of quay were surveyed and transferred, together with eight ship-to-shore gantry cranes, five mobile harbour cranes, two grab unloaders and a fleet of six tugs. Six hundred and twelve staff, among them 17 pilots and 41 crane operators, were taken into the Authority's employment, and 63 shipping agents were entered in the register of agents.

4. 5 September 2026

   The transition period closes

   The ports handled 186 vessel calls during the transition period, together with 54 sailings of the scheduled ferry service, and worked 41,300 twenty-foot equivalent units of containers, 612,000 tonnes of bulk cargo, 46,500 tonnes of break-bulk and project cargo and 5,940 roll-on roll-off units. These figures form the Authority's first statistical release.

5. 6 September 2026

   Authority established

   The Ports Authority of the Velocity Interoperability Network was formally established, with responsibility for the terminals, cargo handling and vessel movements at the four ports of the Network: the Port of Southbank, Northgate Harbour, Meridian Basin and Westbrook Wharf. From that date it operates the terminals directly, acts as harbour master at each port, sets and collects port charges and registers shipping agents.

6. 6 September 2026

   ports.gov.vin launched

   The Authority launched its official website, carrying press releases and official statements, the register of terminals and their berths, the rules for the handling of every class of cargo, the procedure for shipping agents, the schedule of port charges and the rules of safety and security that apply within the ports.

7. 6 September 2026

   Terminals, rules and charges announced

   The Authority confirmed that its seven terminals would open under its management between 7 and 10 September 2026, and published the cargo handling rules, the procedure for shipping agents and the schedule of port charges, all to take effect on 7 September 2026 in place of the interim arrangements.

8. 6 September 2026

   First throughput figures published

   The Authority published its first statistical release, covering the transition period and recording the position at establishment: seven terminals, seventeen berths, 612 staff and 63 registered agents.

9. 7 to 10 September 2026

   The terminals open

   The Southbank Container, General Cargo and Ferry Terminals open on 7 September; the Northgate Bulk Terminal and Liquid Bulk Jetty on 8 September; the Meridian Basin Terminal on 9 September; and Westbrook Wharf on 10 September. Vessels already alongside continue to be worked without interruption.

10. Forthcoming

    Eastfield Reach Terminal

    A two-berth container terminal with 560 metres of quay is under construction at Eastfield Reach. It is recorded in the terminal register as forthcoming, and its opening date will be announced in the Newsroom once it is fixed.

11. Forthcoming

    Quarterly reporting and the 2027 schedule of charges

    The first full quarterly report, covering the quarter ending 30 September 2026, will be published in October 2026 and will be the first to report on the terminals under the Authority's own management. The schedule of port charges for 2027 will be published in November 2026.

Announcements are published in the Newsroom. For the Authority's present responsibilities, see About the Ports Authority; for the register of terminals as it now stands, see Terminals; and for the figures on which this account draws, see Statistics. Enquiries about the Authority's records may be sent to contact@ports.gov.vin.