By Gerardo R. Partido
Variety News Staff

FOR fiscal year 2006, the Port Authority of Guam’s operating revenues decreased by $1.2 million or 5 percent, the Office of the Public Auditor disclosed in its latest report.
The port’s operating revenues were down from $26.5 million in FY 2005 to $25.3 million during the last fiscal year.
OPA attributed the decrease to the decline of loaded containers and the addition of chassis equipment by the shipping companies to their current inventory.
Specifically, OPA said revenue from tons of cargo at the port decreased from 2 million to 1.9 million tons, indicating that there were less loaded containers handled in FY 2006.
While revenue declined, OPA said the port’s operating expenses continued to increase by $1.5 million from $25.8 million to $27.3 million. As a result, the port had an operating loss of $2 million in FY 2006 compared to the $668,000 operating gain in FY 2005.
OPA acknowledged that the port closed FY 2006 operations with a $1.5 million increase in net assets or net income, the fourth year the port reported an increase in net assets.
However, OPA said that were it not for the $3.2 million of earthquake and typhoon gain, the port would have had a decrease in net assets or net loss of $1.7 million. The earthquake and typhoon gain occurred because there was an over accrual of the costs of earthquake and typhoon repairs, which were originally set at $8.3 million.
The largest operating expense increases posted by the port included expenses for equipment maintenance, utilities, and insurance. Costs for equipment maintenance were for parts, materials and supplies, and repairs and maintenance that increased by $1.2 million from $1.8 million to $3.0 million.
The increase was largely due to the repairs and operational supplies for the port’s gantries, tractors, forklifts, and lifters. Cost for utilities likewise increased by $258,000 or 25 percent from $1.0 million to $1.3 million due to the rate increases by the Guam Power Authority and Guam Waterworks Authority.
Specifically, the port’s power bills averaged $90,000 per month in FY 2006 compared to $59,000 per month in FY 2005.
Insurance also increased by 9 percent from $2.5 million to $2.7 million due to an increase in insurance rates.
Of the port’s $27.3 million in total operating expenses, $16.5 million was for payroll and related benefits, an increase of 4 percent.
OPA attributed this increase to the hiring of 15 employees, implementation of P.L. 27-106 that restored salary increments, overtime, and an increase in unfunded pension costs.