SCT Logistics slams ACCC perception of PN east-west domination

<p>SCT Logistics has challenged the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) assertion that a Toll takeover of Patrick will kill rail competition on the east-west freight corridor.</p> <p>SCT said it was already competing successfully with the Toll-Patrick owned Pacific National and had a third of the rail freight share on the Melbourne-Perth route, <em>The Age</em> reports today (Tuesday, December 6).</p> <p>Pacific National controls about two-thirds of the freight on that route, <em>The Age</em> said. </p> <p>The company’s managing director, Peter Smith, said he feared that ACCC concessions forced on Toll could destroy SCT’s position as a competitor on that route by allowing other operators cheap and easy access to the rail line, the paper said.</p> <p>SCT was angry with the perception that that there is no competition on the east-west rail corridor, Mr Smith said.</p> <p>Freight rates for forwarders had dropped 41% since 1991 in the presence of SCT competition, he said.</p> <p>"How could freight rates have come down so much if there is no competition?" Mr Smith said.</p> <p>"This has happened despite costs going up so much for fuel, labour wagons and steel prices."</p> <p>As a freight forwarder, SCT has a higher share of volumes on Melbourne-Perth than Toll, with SCT running five return services to Perth a week compared to Toll’s half share in Pacific National, which runs nine services a week, Mr Smith told <em>The Age</em> .</p> <p>The company is also planning to compete more aggressively on the Sydney-Perth rail route once a planned terminal in Parkes is completed.</p> <p>SCT believes that Toll’s concession to the ACCC to offer six locomotives for other operators would disadvantage its services because they are the locomotives Pacific National used to haul SCT’s operations.</p> <p>SCT has ordered 11 of its own locomotives but they won’t arrive until 2007.</p> <br />