[Source: Supplied]

The Fiji Ports Corporation Limited has announced a bonus of $243,907.61.

This will be shared among the 132 employees of FPCL.

FPCL Chair Shaheen Ali says that with the support of the employees, the company has recorded a strong performance for the 2021 financial year.

[Source: Supplied]

Ali says they will also be paying a dividend of $13.4 million to the shareholders.

He adds that the government will receive 41 percent of the total dividend, or $5.49 million, the Fiji National Provident Fund will receive 39 percent ($5.22 million), and Aitken Spence will receive 20 percent, or $2.68 million.

The FPCL managed to record a net profit after Tax of $22.34 million last year, which is a slight reduction compared to 2020.

“Despite 2021 being another challenging year, with the continued COVID-19 restrictions world over, the FPCL was able put in place risk mitigation measures that ensure business continuity – despite some ports being closed globally. In fact, in 2021, we experienced our most severe second wave. But we still didn’t lose a day.”

Ali says this was because of the global downturn, leading to a reduction in vessel numbers and zero cruise liner visits.

They also noted a 10 percent increase in the dockage revenue, while wharfage increased by 8 percent.

He goes on to say that this is due to an increase in container volume as well as longer vessel docking times at ports.