State ports should be restructured

STATE-OWNED ports, including Rosslare, should be restructured into competing multi-port companies built around Dublin, Cork and Shannon Foynes, according to McCarthy.

His report also recommended that the privatisation of some or all of the ports should be considered, ideally after restructuring. The adequacy of competition in the sector should be reviewed prior to privatisation, and suitable regulatory arrangements instituted if deemed necessary.

The seaport sector, which is almost exclusively in state ownership, handles more than 95% of Ireland’s external trade by volume.