Bon voyage to Terry

THE DARWIN Port will be a hub for the NT’s growth and development over the next 20 years, according to its outgoing CEO Terry O’Connor.

Mr O’Connor, who announced his retirement in March, punched his card for the last time at the East Arm docks on Friday after 11 years at the port and eight as CEO.

Mr O’Connor told the Sunday Territorian he would look back on his time at the helm of the port with “a great sense of pride”.

“There’s no doubt we’ve been able to achieve a lot over that period of time,” he said.

“With the new infrastructure and all we’ve been able to do there is a real sense of achievement.” Mr O’Connor said he was most proud of the port’s expansion during his leadership. “We could talk about Inpex or talk about the new facilities but for me it’s about the stuff that you can’t see — that is dredging the entrance to the channel to 14 metres, giving access to larger ships and most of the vessels that come to Darwin,” he said.

Mr O’Connor also hailed the impact of the port’s new harbour management system, which he said was “world leading”. On Darwin Port’s controversial 99-year lease deal with Chinese company Landbridge signed back in 2015, which took the port out of government hands, Mr O’Connor said the deal had the Territory “positioned for the future”.

Mr O’Connor said over the next 20 years the port was now ready to capitalise on Asian markets hungry for the NT’s resources.

“(The port) is going to continue to drive the development and the growth of the Territory,” he said.

Mr O’Connor will be succeeded as Darwin Port CEO by Darren Lambourn.