Simulating the impact of extreme weather events on port operations

The paper presents a methodology to design and develop a Container Terminal Operation Simulation (CTOS) which stimulate the vulnerability of port operations to extreme weather events. A single terminal was used for the purpose of the simulation, as opposed to the entire Sydney Port, so that a finer scale of detail can be captured and modelled hence producing a closer to real-life outcome of possible climate impacts. The CTOS outcome for the port configuration shows that the crane throughput loss within a 24 hour period due to six hours of rain and six hours of high wind (separately) is 13%. While this is a considerable loss within a 24 hour period, it is important to note that port operators do take corrective measures such as increasing their productivity in the work shifts after such an incident. The current impact is a loss of 184 containers per year at present and 241 containers per year based on the projected hot days in 2030, which is less than 0.01% of the annual container trade of the port.