Developing and testing a methodology to assess the economic sustainability of a seaport operator

Abstract

Subject. The article addresses the problem of economic sustainability of seaport operators. Objectives. The purpose is to develop and test a methodology for assessing the economic sustainability of a seaport operator. Methods. The study draws on methods of systems, structural, functional, positive, normative, comparative, and statistical analysis, the weights method, pairwise comparison, expert assessment, etc. Results. We developed a five-stage algorithm for integrated assessment of economic sustainability of a port operator based on the main functional components, i.e. production, resource-and-technology, investment, finance, and business sustainability. We tested our methodology, using the case of AO Novoroslesexport, the leading stevedore of the Azov-Black Sea Basin. The methodology can be used for port operators of other sea basins; its results may be helpful for company management, shareholders, banks, service consumers, seaport authorities, regional authorities, and other interested parties. Conclusions. Our methodology may become an effective tool to manage a port operator and determine its intra- and inter-port competitive ability. It enables to track threats affecting the economic stability and take timely action to eliminate them. It creates information base for making management decisions and strategic plans for a stevedoring company.