The Port of Townsville Limited has rejected as nonsense claims by the Greenpeace that it is blockading the visit by the protest ship Esperanza.

“At this time the Port does not have an application for a berth for the vessel. All arrangements previously made by the vessel’s former agent were cancelled when that agent ceased to act for the Esperanza on Monday 28 July 2008.

“The Port has not been able to get a response from Greenpeace as to the identity of their new agent or any other information about the visit, despite several requests to Greenpeace over the past two days,” Port of Townsville Chief Executive Officer Barry Holden said.

It is a requirement of the Port of Townsville Limited that every vessel must have an agent appointed to manage its affairs whilst in Port.

“The Port’s officers have been juggling commercial shipping and cargo handling operations to accommodate the Esperanza and its public ship open day proposed for Saturday; however, this is extremely difficult without communication with the vessel's agent,” Mr Holden said.

Under its legislation the Port is required to maintain an appropriate level of safety and security in the provision of Port facilities and services.

The Port has a duty to ensure the security and safety of its employees, its customers, its tenants, its service providers and its own infrastructure.

Given the recent events where vessels of customers at southern coal ports were targeted by Greenpeace, our concerns are considered warranted and security arrangements appropriate.

If Greenpeace has a contrary view and can provide acceptable guarantees that Port customers and infrastructure will not be interfered with, they should contact the Port directly to discuss the matter further.