Advance manifest implementation nears with second VASP
THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) is set to accredit
a second value-added service provider (VASP) in the next few
days, the missing piece in the implementation of the advance
inward foreign manifest (IFM) requirement.
In an interview, Customs deputy commissioner Alexander Arevalo
said the accreditation of a second VASP will trigger initial
testing of the advance IFM requirement and its eventual implementation
by yearend.
Arevalo said shipping lines, represented by the Association
of International Shipping Lines (AISL), have asked the BOC
to defer testing and full implementation of the IFM until
a second VASP has been accredited to ensure proper handling
of data from their member lines.
AISL has dropped an earlier plan to develop its own system
to handle the advance IFM requirement and will instead use
the services of the VASPs.
“By middle of this month, maybe we could start the parallel
run of the IFM between the BOC, AISL, Intercommerce Network
Service (INS) and one of the three remaining VASP applicants
and tentatively schedule full implementation by the start
of the last quarter of 2007,” Arevalo said.
INS is so far the only BOC-accredited VASP.
Arevalo said the bureau is also talking to the Philippine
International Seafreight Forwarders Association to join the
parallel testing.
“We are also set to come out with implementing guidelines
of the project in the next few days pending resolution of
some aspects such as rates and downtime,” Arevalo said.
The parallel testing for the IFM only involves electronic
and actual submission of the manifest to the BOC for counterchecking
to determine how fast the VASP system would react to voluminous
entries.
Under CAO 1-2007, the BOC requires shipping lines, non-vessel
operating common carriers, cargo consolidators, co-loaders
and breakbulk agents to electronically provide through accredited
VASPs accurate data on vessels and cargoes at any port 12
hours prior to their arrival.
The move is also related to implementation of other BOC projects
such as the single-window transaction and AsycudaWorld.
PPA to appeal SC ruling on Batangas land expropriation
THE Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) will
appeal a Supreme Court (SC) decision ordering the agency to
pay P11 billion to owners of expropriated land for the Batangas
Port Modernization project.
PPA assistant general manager for operations Benjamin Cecilio,
in an interview, said the agency is readying a motion for
reconsideration for the decision involving 231 residents affected
by the project.
Associate Justice Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez, affirmed the
earlier rulings of the Court of Appeals and Batangas Regional
Trial Court, which set the expropriation price of the subject
lots at P5,500 per square meter.
PPA insisted the value of the 1.3-million square meter (or
130 hectares) land should be lower than P4,800 per square
meter because they were agricultural lands.
Cecilio said the PPA has no money to pay, adding that if they
do all the port projects will face delays.
Based on audited financial statements, PPA’s retained
earnings were at P14.89 billion as of end 2006.
“For sure we will file a motion for reconsideration,”
Cecilio said, adding that the PPA legal department has been
coordinating with the Office of the Solicitor General on the
issue.
“Our bonuses will be gone and, worse, we may not continue
other port projects,” Cecilio said.
He said there are no plans to take out a loan for the port
project, since the court may garnish this.
The SC lifted the temporary restraining order it issued on
August 7, 2006 enjoining the lower court from implementing
its order compelling PPA to pay just compensation to the lot
owners.
“The trial court is directed to implement its final
and executory orders requiring the PPA to pay the respondents
the amount of P5,500 per square meter with 12% annual interest
from the date of expropriation on September 11, 2001 until
fully paid,” the SC said in its decision.
“It is understood that the zonal value per square meter
of expropriated lots, classified as industrial, is increased
from P400 to P4,250 per square meter. The initial deposit
paid by petitioner to respondents shall be deducted from the
total amount of just compensation payable to them,”
it added.
Cecilio said the ongoing bidding for the Batangas Port project
will not stop.
Eligible bidders International Container Terminals Services,
Inc. and Asian Terminals, Inc. were given until September
7 to submit their documents; the opening of bids will follow.
The winning bidder will manage the terminal for 25 years with
option for an extension.
RP ban on single-hull tankers transporting white oil studied
AFTER banning single-hulled tankers transporting
black oil, the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) now plans
to phase out similar tankers carrying white oil to protect
the environment and to comply with international regulations.
Marina administrator Vicente Suazo, Jr., in an interview,
said the agency wants the policy implemented by 2010, or two
years after the ban on single-hulled tankers carrying black
oil.
“By 2010, we expect that all single-hulled tankers plying
the local trade have been phased out not just to prevent maritime
pollution but primarily to comply with international standards,”
Suazo said.
Marina will meet with the Philippine Petroleum Sea Transport
Association, Association of Tanker Operators of the Philippines,
and oil firms to discuss the best option for the total phase-out
of single-hulled tankers in the local trade without significantly
hurting the business.
Marina is now looking at the availability of shipyards that
can accommodate orders for the required tankers by 2010 since
almost all shipyards are fully booked until 2012.
It is also trying to strike an agreement with the National
Maritime Leasing Corp to assist tanker operators to secure
funds for their refleeting programs.
In addition, the agency is awaiting the final decision of
the International Maritime Organization (IMO) on tanker hull
regulations before coming out with a memorandum circular phasing
out single-hulled tankers.
Based on IMO regulations, the total phase-out of single-hulled
tankers may be done in three phases. The final phase-out date
for Category 1 tankers (acquired before the Maritime Pollution
Convention was ratified or pre-MARPOL tankers) has been brought
forward to 2005 from 2007. The final phase-out date for Category
2 and 3 tankers (MARPOL tankers and smaller tankers) was also
brought forward to 2010 from 2015.
The IMO issued such regulation following the sinking of the
Prestige, a single-hulled tanker which broke in two after
being battered by strong waves and winds off the Spanish coast
of Galicia in November 2002. The vessel spilt more than 77,000
liters of bunker fuel, disrupting the coastal economies of
France, Spain and nearby areas.
“We will base our schedule on the final ruling of the
IMO. Nonetheless, we are tentatively setting the phase-out
by 2010,” Suazo said.
Early this year, Marina ordered the phase out of single-hulled
tankers carrying black oil by April 2008, prompted by the
MT Solar I incident in July. The tanker spilt 220,000 liters
of black oil and wreaked havoc on he coastal town of Guimaras.
There are presently about 214 tankers in the country, 21 of
which can transport black oil.
AFTER SuperFerry 16, Aboitiz Transport System
(ATS) has sold another vessel from its SuperFerry fleet, a
move seen to convert the firm into a freight service provider
and cut its debt by more than half.
ATS said it sold and delivered SuperFerry 15 to Heung-A Shipping
Co., Ltd. for P789 million and will gain approximately P243
million from the sale.
ATS sold two vessels early this year, liquidated P1.7 billion
in debt, and reduced interest costs by 59% from last year.
The company has been converting unused passage capacity to
roll on-roll off capacity since last year. Three SuperFerries
have been converted, generating an additional 192 TEUs to
its freight capacity.
ATS also recently partnered with AP Moller Maersk Group to
grow its freight business. The joint venture company called
MCC Transport Philippines offers regular weekly sailings,
servicing the ports of Manila, Cebu and Cagayan de Oro.
In a recent disclosure, ATS reported P366.6 million in net
income after tax for the first half of 2007, a 101% increase
versus the 2006 figure.
The company is projecting a 7% increase in freight business
this year that will be propelled by cargoes coming from the
south specifically Dumaguete, Bacolod, Cagayan de Oro, Davao,
General Santos and Zamboanga.
BUDGET airline Cebu Pacific (CEB) is the
domestic aviation market leader based on Civil Aeronautics
Board (CAB) passenger data from January to June 2007.
CEB carried a total of 2,256,289 passengers for the period
in review compared to Philippine Airlines’ (PAL) 1,981,267.
The Gokongwei-owned carrier also registered an 84% load factor
compared to 80% and 72% of its nearest competitors.
CEB’s total domestic passenger carriage in the first
semester of 2007 soared 72% from 1,310,376 commuters for the
first half of last year. Load factor percentage was also up
from 74% for 2006.
The CAB data showed that the domestic air travel market rose
24% in the first half of 2007.
South Harbor, Manila Harbor Center land swap proposed
THE South Harbor and the Manila Harbor Center
should switch places to maximize growth and port potential,
decongest traffic as well as protect national heritage. This
idea is being pushed by former Philippine Ports Authority
general manager and now Maritime Industry Administrator Vicente
Suazo, Jr. in a study titled Boulevard 2000.
The proposal champions the conversion of South Harbor into
Manila’s ecotourism area and the areas of North Harbor
up to the privately-owned Harbour Centre Port Terminals, Inc
into the country’s all-port services.
“This set-up will be more business friendly as all-port
services will be concentrated on one side and economic and
tourism on the other and these two will be divided by the
Pasig River,” Suazo explained.
The proposal is, however, not exactly new and has been collecting
dust for almost a decade now until the administration this
year showed interest.
“The land-swap scheme will significantly reduce traffic
in the city as ports, all lined up on the North side, will
have access to major road networks such as C-2, C-3 and C-5;
(there will also be) no truck bans (and there is a) provision
for (a) railway system that will definitely increase transit
time for both North-bound and South-bound traffic,”
Suazo said.
“Also, domestic and international operations are interconnected,
greatly increasing efficiency at the ports. (The project)
will also open operations to intermodal transport,”
Suazo added.
“This is like the set-up of Hong Kong, wherein all their
port services are located in adjacent areas and the business
district is concentrated on the other side of the region,”
Suazo explained.
Based on the plan, an additional 150 hectares of the 279-hectare
Harbour Centre require development by the present owners.
South Harbor also needs to be developed, particularly its
road network.
According to Suazo, both South Harbor operator Asian Terminals,
Inc and Harbour Centre are amenable to the idea of a land
swap as long as their investments are protected.
Suazo will present Boulevard 2000 to the National Economic
and Development Authority, the Department of Transportation
and Communications and, eventually, to the Office of the President.
With enough will, Suazo said the project could be completed
in three to five years.
