Influential factors in port infrastructure tariff formulation, implementation and revision

• This paper examines factors influential to port infrastructure tariff practices.
• Tariff policy, stakeholders’ participation and transparency are very influential.
• Tariff regulation has a limited influence over port tariff design practices.

The process of formulation, revision and approval of port infrastructure tariffs is complex and involves different stakeholders. The extant literature focuses more on port pricing research but pays less attention to the practice of port infrastructure tariff setting. This paper aims to identify and analyses the influential factors in the port infrastructure tariff formulation process using survey data collected from 67 port authorities. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) is first conducted before confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) is applied to analyse the latent factors underlying port infrastructure tariff setting. The analysis results suggested the four factors influential to infrastructure tariff practice, namely tariff policies, transparency, tariff regulation and stakeholder participation. The paper also presents the implications for port authorities, management and stakeholders.