October 2016 update

As you all know when we accepted the proposal to hold the 2017 Worlds in Barbados, one of the biggest incentives was the offer from Geest to transport containers from Portsmouth and Le Havre at a significant reduction in cost. There was no comparable offer for Australia, New Zealand and USA, therefore to introduce a level of fairness OKDIA pitched the event based on shared costs – a uniform entry fee for everyone to include shipping and entry fee. This was widely approved and has been the model we have worked on since then.

However what has come to light since then is that the cost of internal movements in Europe, to get the containers from say Denmark to Le Havre, is much higher than originally forecast, with the end result that very few containers (maybe only 1 to 3) will be using the Geest service and the rest will be sent on direct services.

This effectively negates much of the impact we thought the Geest offer would have on the cost and means that the ‘shared entry fee ‘ is higher than was originally forecast. Whether it was worth continuing on this basis has been discussed several times, as the differences between the European and down-under costs are much less than expected. We could even ask whether we would have suggested the shared cost model if the Geest offer was not on the table. I suspect not. Would the Australians and New Zealanders still have voted for Barbados without sharing costs? Probably.

In addition the unstable currency markets are making it very difficult to predict final costs as each quote is in a different currency, which change almost daily against the pound.

To explain what has been done so far, each nation has been asked to obtain quotes for their containers for direct delivery and via Portsmouth or Le Havre to link up to the Geest service to Barbados. It is looking increasingly like Denmark will ship direct. The German costs are still not ready (rough estimate is below).

It has been a slow process to get to this point because of the time it has taken to get all the quotes in, but here is a summary of where we are with the container shipping and expected entries.

budgetforecast

Of course, we need to add to this the ‘sailing fee’ of US$266, the OKDIA Levy of £25 and a contingency of say, £75. This gives us a shared entry fee of around £900-950

If we can get more Europeans, especially UK boats, to sign up then this will come down, but it is getting late to do that. If we can completely fill the down-under containers (even with Finns), then it will also come down.

The intention is still to charge for the worst-case scenario. If everything works as expected there will be a refund made after the event of extra monies held, distributed equally to all sailors.

Points to note

  • Shipping quotes included in the shared cost model do not include insurance, carnets, fumigation etc. It should only be the actual transportation costs. All other costs are additional and must be met locally.
  • Shipping costs submitted by the final deadline of October 30th are final and cannot be increased. At some point after that date we will issue a list of payment terms of how much to pay to OKDIA and how much OKDIA will pass on to others. This will include the OKDIA Levy and the contingency.
  • The contingency will be held by OKDIA, and used or refunded to sailors at a later date.
  • Entry fees on the Notice of Race are quoted in GBP. ‘Sailing Fees’ will be paid in USD. Local container organisers need to arrange with their sailors what to charge in local currency for container bookings to match this in relation to their quote and also add extras such as insurance, carnet, extra contingency etc.
  • Notwithstanding this, the accounts will be kept in GBP and balanced in GBP after the event.
  • Container bookings received by National Associations after the entry fee has been set will be included in the final calculation but will not alter the sharing of funds or the entry fee.
  • Any outstanding monies (including unspent contingency funds and late bookings) will be refunded to each national association in equal amounts per sailor after the event.
  • The cost of the Australia containers is high for the number of boats. The last information indicates this will either be offset by increasing the local contribution or selling spaces to Finn sailors at a higher rate. The rates will be adjusted for the final calculation.
  • Considering all this we feel we are safer charging a higher entry fee now with the intention of refunding later if possible, than to run short of funds half way through because costs go up or income comes down.
  • To repeat the earlier information from the OA regarding clearance and handling in Barbados: “The company we use is RDL Logistics Services.When the containers land on the quay RDL ensures they get to the Club…………… and returns to the quay when the championship is done. I will send you Commercial Invoices in due course, this has to be completed for all containers and signed by the person responsible for each container. This has to have each sail Number / Description / Weight / Unit Value. It is very important that only Finn and OK sailing related items are brought to and out of Barbados. We have a government duty waiver for the championships and cannot risk having any issues with the Ministry of Finance.”

 

Problems

There are a number of problems that are appearing:

  • The exchange rates are fluctuating so far and so fast it is introducing a level of uncertainty into the whole process that we didn’t anticipate last year.
  • The entry fee is set in GBP and yet most will pay in non-GBP currencies – so the GBP amount withheld locally will change.
  • The Geest fee is in USD and that is going up in GBP but down in EUR
  • Even at this stage it is unclear how many boats will travel, however it is hoped that any spare spaces can be filled by Finns to offset the costs.
  • OKDIA expects a small entry to come from the USA. At this stage the boats are not even built, so there is no way these boats can be realistically expected to form part of the shared costs plan. They will be dealt with separately at a later date. The entry deadline is not until February 1 and their shipping times are much shorter.
  • If boats start to pull out after the entry fee is published then the whole system collapses as there will not be enough shared funds to pay for the containers.

 

What next

  • Please check the above numbers in the spreadsheet against your quote and confirm that it is correct. After October 30 this will be fixed and cannot be changed, as it will form the basis of the shared entry fee level.
  • Any increases reported after October 30 will only be catered for within the limits of the available contingency fund.
  • If anyone drops out after this date then the shipping element will still have to be paid for somehow. There is some contingency built in, but it will not cater for many changes.
  • It might be expedient for container coordinators to contact all those who have booked container spaces, explain the current entry fee charge and either ask for deposits, or firm commitments to pay before October 30.
  • Once OKDIA has these confirmations (plus the German container quotes and the Australian extra contribution) the entry fee will be finalised and the Notice of Race published. The intention is for this to happen by the end of October at the latest, or sooner if possible.
  • The Notice of Race will set out the process for payments and entry fees but in short it will work like this:
  • National Associations collect the overall entry fee from sailors of say, £900, plus any local extras and set a deadline. The deadline for this (or at least the container fee) should be as early as possible to firm up the container bookings.
  • National Associations send all entry forms and ‘sailing fees’ to the OA by February 1.
  • National Associations will then put aside enough for their own shipping costs and pay the rest to OKDIA
  • OKDIA will calculate the split of the shared costs and distribution of costs and inform all parties
  • If Geest shipping is used in the transport chain, that fee will also be transferred to OKDIA as there will only be one invoice to pay for all containers carried.

If anyone has specific questions please do not hesitate to email secretary (at) okdia.org.

 

RD
OKDIA
12/10/16