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Carriers' Appeal
to Suspend SRF Installation Turned Down
THE Department of Transportation and Communications
(DOTC) recently denied the petition of shipping
lines to suspend the implementation of Philippine
Ports Authority (PPA) Administrative Order (AO)
No. 02-2003, requiring the installation of Shore
Reception Facilities (SRF).
The order calls for the installation in all
PPA ports of SRF to provide waste collection
and disposal services to ships' generated waste,
and the collection of corresponding fees to
cover the service.
Transport Secretary Leandro Mendoza, in a letter
to the Montilla Law Office, which represents
the shipping lines, said his department cannot
interfere with PPA's operations. The provision
for the installation of SRFs is part of PPA's
day-to-day activities in carrying out its objectives,
therefore, barring the department from suspending
the order, it said.
"The PPA is a corporate body. It transacts
its business through its officers or agents
whose authority is derived from the board of
directors. In the absence of an authority from
the board, no person, not even the officers
of the corporation, can validly bind the corporation.
"Moreover, PPA is an agency attached to
DOTC (under Executive Order 292) - the said
EO refers to the lateral relationship between
the department and the attached agency for purposes
of policy and program coordination. Port management
is a function, which properly belongs to PPA
and not to DOTC," Mendoza pointed out.
Members of the Association of International
Shipping Lines (AISL), in a letter last year
to then PPA general manager Alfonso Cusi, said
the AO should not be implemented until all concerns
are fully resolved, one of the most pressing
being the compulsory payment of fees to SRF
operator, Golden Dragon International Terminals,
Inc.
Carriers labeled as illegal and baseless the
operator's charging of a fixed fee even if there
was no waste collected and no collection and
disposal service provided.
The port agency issued AO No. 02-2003 or the
Implementing Guidelines on Maritime Pollution
(MARPOL) 73/78 for SRF early last year in compliance
with requirements of the International Maritime
Organization.
In an interview with PortCalls, Pablo Ronquillo,
president of Golden Dragon International Terminals,
exclusive operator of the SRF, said there are
already nine SRFs operating in various Philippine
ports: in the North and South Harbors, the Manila
International Container Terminal, the Batangas
port and the ports of Bataan, Legaspi, Davao,
Palawan and Iloilo.
Concerns of domestic lines
Meanwhile, the PPA recently responded to issues
related to the AO raised by domestic shipping
lines through the Philippine Liner Shipping
Association (PLSA). These include the right
of the contractor to board the vessel; the prerogative
of the shipping firm to declare what waste to
collect; and the rationale for the imposition
of the garbage fee.
In a letter to PLSA president Josephine G. Uranza,
the port agency stressed the collection of waste
and garbage must not cause delay to the vessel
and that authorizes the private operator to
board the vessel.
"For how else will the contractor collect
the wastes from the vessel?" PPA said,
adding that the boarding by the contractor must
take into consideration reasonable security
measures imposed in the vessel.
Earlier, the PLSA said vessel boarding for the
purposes of garbage collection is not mandatory,
only permissive.
The port agency stressed the order covers wastes
that are in the vessel when it docks in ports.
It added the order requires that wastes or garbage
in the vessel should be disposed into the reception
facility.
"It does not distinguish whether the wastes
are plastics or otherwise. Vessels may, of course,
decide to dispose of garbage at sea, if allowed,
but if they did not do so and carried those
wastes to port, then they are subject to collection
and disposal to the SRF," PPA noted in
response to the domestic carriers' assertion
that they are entitled to limit collection to
solid waste only and not to oily waste or noxious
substances.
Meanwhile, PPA said it will look more closely
on alleged cross subsidies given by operators
of larger ships to small operators under the
AO.
"We request the PPA to urgently review
its tariff setting so that it will allow for
a level playing field among all ship operators,"
PLSA said.
The association is also pushing for the minimum
measurement to be set at 0.1 cubic meter (cu.m.)
of garbage with the fee at P100 as minimum charge
and an incremental fee of P100 for every additional
0.1 cu.m.
At present, a fixed fee is imposed on every
vessel covering the collection of 0.4 cu.m.
or less of garbage. An additional service fee
is charged for the collection of oily waste,
noxious liquid substance and garbage in excess
of 0.4 cu. m.
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Cebu
Brokers Claim not to have Been Consulted on
RA 9280
THE
Cebu Chamber of Customs Brokers, Inc. (CCCBI)
has expressed disappointment over the enactment
of Republic Act 9280 or the Customs Brokers
Act of 2004, saying they were not consulted.
"In compliance to the said Republic Act,
your office had given the Chamber of Customs
Brokers, Inc. and the Professional Group of
Customs Brokers the opportunity to submit a
draft copy of the suggested Customs Administrative/Memorandum
Order.
"Though these groups may represent the
majority of customs brokers in the Philippines,
we feel that we, non-Manila-based brokers, (were)
neglected and not aptly represented," said
CCCBI president Bensing R. Raguindin in a letter
to the Bureau of Customs (BOC).
In that letter, the group attached its comments
on certain provisions of the law.
The association said it found "loopholes"
in Article III, Section 19 of the act, which
allows the practice of the profession in any
collection district without the need for securing
another license from the BOC.
Raguindin said the provision must be clarified
in the implementing rules and regulations.
CCCBI noted the steps in determining authenticity
of the professional identification card must
be indicated in the bureau's CAO/CMO as the
process is prone to fraud and abuse.
"Brokers who are interested to practice
in other collection ports especially outside
Metro manila will simply issue a national identification
card for their customs representatives. (They)
will sign a blank entry and let (their) representative
process the entry," the group explained.
It added that if the practice is tolerated,
it will be unfair to non-Manila-based brokers
since the opportunity to practice the profession
outside Manila is very limited.
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PASAR
Port Declared ISPS Compliant
THE Philippine Associated
Smelting and Refining Corp. (PASAR) port recently
received its certificate of port compliance,
having passed the requirements set by the International
Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) code.
The company, one of Asia's biggest copper smelter
and refining firms, was among the first private
companies declared ISPS compliant. The anti-terror
code is a requirement of the International Maritime
Organization (IMO).
The private port of PASAR, which is being used
to service the shipping requirements of its
smelting and refinery complex in Isabel, Leyte,
already has the necessary security systems and
procedures in place to continue trading with
major partners overseas.
Under the ISPS, international vessels coming
from non-compliant ports may face sanctions
from other IMO contracting governments such
as tighter inspection and may even be detained
or refused entry.
With a capacity of 25,000 deadweight tons, the
port of PASAR can accommodate two vessels at
a time. It caters to the needs of the company
which ships about 1.5 million metric tons of
copper cathodes and other by-products each year.
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ICTSI
Net Profits Double in First Half of the Year
FOREIGN operations boosted
first-half profits of International Container
Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) with consolidated
net profits of P446 million for the first six
months of 2004, growing 101% over net profits
of P222 million posted in the same period in
2003.
Second-quarter net profits grew 135%, from P119
million in 2003 to P280 million in 2004. The
company did not book extraordinary earnings
or write-offs during the quarter.
Profits for both periods in review were boosted
by the improved profitability of subsidiaries
Baltic Container Terminal (BCT) in Poland and
Tecon Suape, S. A. (TSSA) in Brazil. TSSA posted
positive net earnings for the first time since
the start of its operations in 2002.
First-half net profits were derived from consolidated
gross revenues of P4.2 billion, an increase
of 23% over revenues in June 2003 of P3.4 billion.
The increase in revenues reflects the consolidation
of revenues from new subsidiary Baltic Container
Terminal (BCT), which was acquired in June last
year, and the growth in Tecon Suape S.A. (TSSA)
revenues by 160%. The Manila International Container
Terminal (MICT) remains to be the major contributor
to group revenues, accounting for 64% of consolidated
revenues. Operations of foreign subsidiaries
BCT and TSSA contributed revenues of P1.4 billion,
34% of total revenues, up from 22% of revenues
in 2003.
Consolidated revenues reported in the second
quarter amounted to P2.2 billion, 28% higher
than the P1.7 billion reported in the second
quarter of 2003. This quarter's incremental
revenues were mainly from foreign subsidiaries
TSSA and BCT. Revenues of subsidiary BCT grew
78% following the implementation of new tariff
rates in the second half of 2003, improving
average revenue yield per TEU by over 35%.
The ICTSI Group handled 897,640 TEUs in the
first semester of the year, up 16% from 775,706
recorded in the same period last year. Volume
for the same period in review by the MICT and
consolidated subsidiaries totaled 840,538 TEUs,
up 17% from 720,871 TEUs reported in the same
period last year.
On a quarterly basis, group wide volume grew
18%, from 400,897 TEUs last year to 473,706
TEUs this year.
For the second quarter, total throughput of
MICT and consolidated subsidiaries was 443,348
TEUs, 20% higher than 370,963 TEUs reported
in 2003.
In Manila, MICT's volume for the period ending
June 2004 grew 3% to 556,201 TEUs, accounting
for 66% of total consolidated volume. On a quarterly
basis, MICT's throughput was 292,714 TEUs, a
seven% increase over the second quarter of 2003.
BCT's six-month volume of 186,231 TEUs reflected
a 33% growth over last year. BCT handled 96,980
TEUs for the second quarter, 32% higher than
73,339 TEUs handled last year.
TSSA reported a significant improvement in throughput
for the first half of the year of 63,275 TEUs,
up 268%, from 17,210 TEUs handled last year.
The company reported positive quarter earnings
for the first time since the start of its operations
in Quarter 2 2002 as volumes continue to improve
from last quarter. The Suape Container Terminal
handled 33,301 TEUs, an improvement of 260%
over last year.
For the first six months, Subic Bay International
Terminal Corp. (SBITC), cargo handler at the
NSD Terminal In Subic Bay Freeport, handled
34,831 TEUs, up by 44%. For the second quarter,
SBITC handled 20, 353 TEUs, up by 44% from the
same period last year.
South Cotabato Integrated Port Services (SCIPSI),
cargo handler at Makar Wharf in the Port of
Gen. Santos, managed a 4% increase, handling
57,102 TEUs for the first six months this year.
SCIPSI's second-quarter volume grew 1% to 30,358
TEUs.
EBITDA for the first semester amounted to P1.36
billion, 45% higher than P938 million last year.
The increase was attributed to improved earnings
from BCT and TSSA. Driven by higher earnings
from TSSA and BCT in the second quarter, the
company earned P754 million in EBITDA, representing
an increase of 58% from P478 million in 2003.
Earnings before interest and taxes, or EBIT,
amounted to P555 million, 92% higher than P289
million last year, and 36% higher than the prior
quarter's EBIT.
The resulting income from operations for the
six-month period was P962 million, 75% higher
than P551 million in the first half of 2003.
The second quarter operating income grew 92%
to P555 million, from last year's P289 million.
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