APA NEWSLETTER
NEW EQUIPMENT AND FACILITY FOR PORT OF
PANJANG
The
Port of Panjang, a significant economic gateway not only for Lampung but also for
the hinterlands of South Sumera, is gradually being developed into an
international port.
The
joint operation with PT Andahanesa Abadi started the demand for foreign cargo
handling that resulted in the installation of four liquid bulk tanks dedicated
to caustic soda, three of which have been in operation in an area of 7,250
square meters since January 2003. In addition, two units of Rubber Tyred Gantry
Crane (RTG), with a capacity of 35 tons each, were also set in place. The new
equipment is aimed at boosting the port’s container handling capabilities by 4%
per annum in terms of Ship Output per Day (SOD) as well as operational
efficiency measured in Ton/Gang/Hour (TGH). In anticipation of CPO booming this
year, two units of CPO tanks were also appropriated out of the four units that
have been agreed upon with CV Sutomo and PT Cipta Karya Gemilang. These
facilities will cover an area of 9,000 square meters.
RESUMPTION OF DEVELOPMENT AT
BOJONEGARA PORT
The
development of the Port of Bojonegara, in Banten Province, was initiated in
1991. The infrastructure project, which was temporarily suspended due to
adverse developmental conditions and financial constraints, was targeted to
provide a buffer port for the Port of Tanjung Priok.
An
estimation done by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which
sets the saturation limit of Tanjung Priok in 2008 at a maximum of 3.7 million
TEUs, catalyzed the efforts to pursue the resumption of the port project at
Bojonegara. Realizing the urgency of immediately developing an alternative port
that would accommodate the upward trend of container flow, the Management of
Indonesia Port Corporation (IPC) II readily addressed this concern through
close coordination with the Ministry of Communications, the Ministry of
State-Owned Enterprises and the local government. By end of 2003, the port
works are expected to restart which will result in the full operationalization
of the Port of Bojonegara in 2005.
PAT PERFORMANCE
The
Port Authority of Thailand is once again pleased to announce that during 2002,
both Bangkok Port and Laem Chabang Port have experienced an increase in
throughput. The combined figure of 3.767 million TEUs records an 11.39%
increase over the previous year.
The
number of vessels calling at Bangkok Port rose almost 2% to 2,519 calls, while
its cargo throughput increased by 4.53% to 13.964 million tons. Container
volume, including empty containers, reached 1.11 million TEUs, scaling a 3.83%
increase from the year-ago record.
At
Laem Chabang Port, a similar growth was experienced. The year 2002 saw a 4.11%
increase in vessel calls, with an annual total of 4,481 calls. Cargo throughput
reached 25.593 million tons, representing a significant increase of 19.80%.
Container throughput appreciated by approximately 15% to 2.657 million TEUs.
PAT’s
throughput projections for the Fiscal Year 2003 are expected to increase but
not quite as compared to last year’s rates. A 4.5% increase is anticipated to
yield 3.935 million TEUs, with 1.085 million TEUs and 2.850 million TEUs
expected to pass through Bangkok Port and Laem Chabang, respectively. The
conservative forecast is based upon the general economic slowdown coupled with
a stronger Thai baht.
PAT TAKES ON REGIONAL PORTS
The
Port Authority of Thailand is expanding its operational ambit to take control
of the management and administration of a multi-purpose port soon to be
developed in Ranong Province, and of the Chiang Saen Port in Chiang Rai. This
new development, recently disclosed by Mr. Mana Patram, PAT’s Director General,
has led to the establishment of a joint venture operation between PAT and the
private sector.
Aware
that Thailand can no longer procrastinate on port development, Mr. Patram
urged, “This is part of an urgent government action to improve international
trade routes without wasting time waiting for the completion of privatization”.
Two companies will be established and partly owned by PAT: Chiang Saen Berth
Co., Ltd. and Ranong Berth Co., Ltd.
Ranong.
The
construction of the multi-purpose port in Ranong was completed in 2000. The
National Economic and Social Development Plan (NESCP) Committee has finally
placed the port’s development in this year’s fiscal plan with the aim of
developing the port primarily to support the export of agricultural products
such as rubber, coffee and durian to markets in the Indian sub-continent and
the Middle East.
Feasibility
studies show that the port will also encourage shipping along the Andaman
coastline, particularly facilitating trade with neighboring Myanmar, and adding
a further link in the South Asian port network – a major element in the
BIMST-EC (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic
Cooperation organization). This expected growth in shipping and trade is
envisioned to attract manufacturers keen to business within this important
market sector.
Chiang
Saen. In
contrast, Chiang Saen Port is still under construction with its completion
targeted later in the year. Its establishment has also been incorporated into
the NESDP Committee’s strategy for developing Northern Thailand. The program
will support further growth of trade among countries in the Greater Mekong
Sub-region (GMS) and link Thailand’s major economic base – the Eastern Seaboard
– with Bangkok in the North-South and East-West economic corridors.
An urgent step to support the development of Chiang
Saen is the improvement of regional infrastructure that will pave the way to
the establishment of a special economic zone in the Chiang Rai province, which
will promote the area as a gateway to international trade and provide a
production base for neighboring countries. To reinforce such advancement,
shipping, ship manufacturing, and ship repair and maintenance requirements will
also be addressed for vessels transporting goods along the Mekong River.
The completion of the port will allow for improved
safety on berthing, loading and unloading operations of around 20–30 daily
shipcalls from China. Currently, trade from Thailand to China along the Mekong
is dominated by dried longan, tyres, frozen chicken, floor wax and rambutan.
The reverse shipping route hauls apples, pears, buffalo and processed teakwood.
In a related activity, The Cabinet assigned PAT on
25 March 2003 to take charge of the two regional ports: Ranong Port and Chiang
Saen Port as proposed by the National Economic and Social Development Board or
NESDB. PAT is setting up a working committee from PAT’s Board Members and
related agencies to work out the project and negotiate with the Treasury
Department, Ministry of Finance for the possibility of exacting business rental
rates.
BANGKOK PORT’S NEW SERVICES TO PROMOTE
EXPORTS
Bangkok Port (BKP) starts two new services, Pre-Trip
Inspection (PTI) / Pre-Cooling and Special Export Zone to promote exports
through the port.
In a bid to facilitate the export of chilled and
frozen products through the port, BKP provides PTI and Pre-Cooling services at
the Reefer Container Area near Transit Shed No. 17 with 20 plugs prompt for
service. The fee for the use of equipment and electricity for three hours is
215 Baht/20’, 350 Baht/40’ and 405 Baht/45’. Over three hours, the fee will be
430 Baht/20’/day, 700 Baht/40’/day and 810 Baht/45’/day.
In addition, since 21 April 2003, BKP has dedicated
the open storage area behind Transit Shed No. 6 as Special Export Zone. The
area is designed to serve exporters of big consignments such as paper, rubber,
rice, etc., who may want to keep their containers for as long as 30 days
subject to the payment of the following service fees: 500 Baht/20’, 1,000
Baht/40’ and 45’ instead of the normal storage charges.
PAT RECEIVES OFFICIAL ISM CODE CERTIFICATE
Mr. Mana Patram, Director General of the Port
Authority of Thailand (PAT), has disclosed that PAT has officially received the
International Safety Management (ISM) Code Certification. The ISM Code was
certified by the Marine Department end of 2002. The implementation of the ISM
Code is in compliance with the International Maritime Organization’s
requirements and the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea
(SOLAS), stipulating that every ship must possess said certification.
The ISM Code has been implemented on the PAT’s
dredger “Sandon 9” to ensure its safety, including its crew and environment.
The system also helps individuals to continually develop their skills to
prepare them for emergency incidents concerning safety and environment, boost
systematic operation and efficient equipment maintenance, which create
organizational efficiency and greater staff confidence. During the 5-year
validation period, the issuing institution will annually verify the Document of
Compliance (DOC) but the Safety Management Certificate (SMC) will have to be
validated twice within the period under consideration.
PAT’s Director General added that the implementation
of the ISM Code would elevate PAT’s operations to international standard. Aside
from providing dredging services in the channel and bar of the Chao Phraya River,
PAT plans to extend this kind of service to the neighboring countries to
increase the Authority’s revenues.
COMING SOON TO LAEM CHABANG – 800,000 MORE
CONTAINERS
On the 4th of April 2003, the Port
Authority of Thailand and LCIT signed the contract for LCIT’s 30-year
concession to equip and operate the new C3 container terminal at Laem Chabang,
which is estimated to open for business by mid-2004.
The new terminal, conveniently located adjacent to
LCIT’s existing B5 terminal, will provide a deep water draft of 16 meters, a
quay line of 500 meters and an approximated capacity of over 800,000 TEUs. Its
close proximity with B5 terminal is expected to facilitate efficiency in the
delivery of services through the terminals’ joint operation.
The conclusion of the bidding process for C3 is a
great step towards the continued success and global relevance of Thailand’s
exports and of Laem Chabang Port considering that Thailand has scaled
impressive growth in container volumes in recent years.
BANGKOK PORT’S 6-MONTH PERFORMANCE
The following indicators highlight Bangkok Port’s
(BKP) operational performance during the 6 months of Fiscal Year 2003 (October
2002 – March 2003), including variances generated in comparison with previous
year’s records:
q
Vessel
calls decreased by 2.51% to 1,204 calls
q
Cargo
throughput increased by 11.46% to 7,532,467 million tons
q
Container
volume (including empty containers) appreciated by 9.85% to 589,203 TEUs
The cargo types with dramatic increase in volume are
shown as follows:
q
Bonded
cargo increased by 40.78% to 5,492 tons
q
Cargo
transported by rail was up by 55.24% to 4,134 TEUs
q
Containerized
cargo stuffed in the port for export rose by 7.61% to 74,089 TEUs
Measures imposed by BKP to promote the port services
pertinent to the afore-cited cargo types attracted new customers to the port,
which yielded the favorable throughput incidence.
FIRST IAPH REGIONAL MEET HELD IN MALAYSIA
Port Klang Authority (PKA) organized the 4th
International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) Asia/Oceania Regional
Meeting and Regional Port Forum held in Penang, Malaysia on 17–20 February
2003.
Although this was the first regional meeting held in
Malaysia, the country already played host to the 21st IAPH World Ports
Conference in 1999.
The IAPH Regional Meeting was introduced in 2000 to
promote inter-regional cooperation and dialogue among its members. One hundred
and fifty delegates and guests attended the meeting with representatives coming
all the way from the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Iran, China, Pakistan, India,
the ASEAN countries, the Maldives and Japan.
Dato’ Seri Dr. Ling Liong Sik, Transport Minister,
officiated the opening of the meeting. In his address, he stressed, “We live in
a very challenging and yet interesting environment. Our landscape will change
given the framework of WTO and the developments of the ASEAN Free Trade Area.
Barriers will be broken down and trading regulations will be liberalized
further. But these also unite us as a family of nations where we can look
forward to greater independence from other regions and greater inter-dependence
within the region”. He also noted that the ports in the region could learn from
one another as the Top Six Container Ports of the World are all in Asia: Hong
Kong, Singapore, Pusan, Shanghai, Kaohshung and Shenzhen.
Also present at the meeting were Dr. Akio Someya,
IAPH President, who gave the presidential address, Tan Sri Michael Chen, former
Chairman of PKA and current Senate President, Dato’ Sri Ting Chew Peh, Chairman
of PKA, Dr. Neoh Soon Bin, Chairman of the Penang Port Commission, and Dr.
Satoshi Inoue, IAPH Secretary General.
In her welcome address, Datin Paduka O.C. Phang,
General Manager of PKA and 3rd Vice President of IAPH, urged the delegates
to build upon the IAPH network and to collaborate in coping with the challenges
coming from global changes.
For the first time the meeting introduced a Regional
Port Forum as part of the programme. This was intended to provide an
opportunity for delegates to discuss and exchange views on current issues
confronting ports in the region. The forum consisted of four sessions that
covered issues on port security, port safety and environment, ports and
logistics, and port development. The non-IAPH member speakers were from the US
Embassy, APL Singapore, UNESCAP, UN-PEMSEA (Partnerships in Environmental
Management for the Seas of East Asia), and RosettaNet Asia (a local IT
consultant). The following list shows the topics discussed and their
corresponding resource persons:
q
Port
Security
Ø Peter R. Darvas, Assistant
Customs Attache, US Embassy
Ø Des Powell, Executive
Director, Port and Marine Division, Department of Infrastructure, Victoria
Government ESCAP (Australia)
q
Port
Safety and Environment
Ø Adrian Ross, Senior
Programme Officer, PEMSEA
Ø Mohd Saffiar Majid, Port
Klang Authority
Ø Toshiharu Murata, Japan
Ports and Harbors Association
q
Ports
and Logistics
Ø Dong Woo-Ha, ESCAP
Ø S.Y. Foong, Vice President,
RosettaNet
Ø A.N.M. Kishore, Managing
Director, Indian Port Association
q
Port
Development
Ø Mohd Naina Merican, Senior
General Manager,
Penang Port Sdn Bhd
Ø Ho Kim Lan, Saigon Port,
Vietnam
Ø Goon Kok Loon, PSA Corp.
Ltd.
Ø J.D. Dunda, Indonesia Port
Corporation III
Ø Chen Tze Penn, Director General,
Maritime Authority of Singapore