Less and less
overseas vessels register with RP
THE number of overseas fleet registering
under the Philippine flag continues to nose dive due to the
country’s unattractive tax incentives and lack of access
to financing schemes.
In its latest situation report on the overseas shipping sector,
the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) said the number of
overseas-going vessels registering in the country has been
declining at a rate of 9% annually from 2001 to 2007.
Regulations put in place since 2003 to arrest the decline
have also failed to attract operators, it said.
“(The) total paid-up capitalization of operators flying
the flag has likewise decreased by almost 14% parallel to
the decline in the number of vessels that is attributed to
companies which transferred their ships to other flag states
due to the lack of financing schemes offered by the country,”
the Marina said in the report.
“Vessel operators are re-flagging to countries like
Hong Kong, Malta and Liberia, to name a few, to benefit from
the low salaries of seafarers, better business climate, including
fiscal and non-fiscal incentives,” Marina added.
“As a result, the total overseas fleet structure of
the country has decreased by 2.34% from 2001-2005 from 165
to only 157 and further declined by 0.64% at the end of last
year to only 156 that shows the preference of operators to
use other states,” Marina said.
It added the decline is expected to continue at a much faster
rate unless the Philippines comes up with drastic efforts
to lure back both Filipino and foreign vessel operators.
Marina is trying to reverse the trend by issuing policies
that open up opportunities for fleet expansion. One of these
is allowing non-shipowning companies with a minimum paid-up
capitalization of P10 million to charter as many as 10 ships.
Another is allowing shipowning companies with at least P7
million paid-up capital to charter any number of ships.
Marina is also looking at developing financing schemes to
fund ship acquisition through bilateral agreements to alleviate
the financing problems of shipowners.
In addition, the authority is pushing for the urgent certification
of House Bill No. 4210 and Senate Bills 375 and 2079, otherwise
known as the New Ship Mortgage Law, to move lending institutions
higher in the order of payment in cases of defaults to either
second or third priority from fifth.
The establishment of registry offices in other countries and
appointing register officers who will facilitate, control
and enforce compliance of ships flying the flag is another
Marina proposal.
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5% hike in Masbate box volume expected
THE Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) is looking
at a 5% increase in international containerized traffic at
the Port of Masbate on the back of shipments of manufacturer
Nestle Philippines.
Total cargo volume, on the other hand, is expected to shoot
up 20% as a result of the port’s inclusion in the Central
Seaboard of the Strong Republic Nautical Highway.
Nestle and Universal Robina Corp have earlier expressed interest
to use roll on-roll off services from Masbate to the rest
of the Bicol and Visayas region, noting this will cut costs
and transit time by 50%.
Masbate is Region 5’s top international gateway, handling
at 200 TEUs per month in the last three months.
Port manager Alfonso Taggueg, Jr. told PortCalls the port
is gearing toward more containerized operations with most
companies in the area shifting from bulk to container shipping
to cut costs.
Many manufacturers in the Bicol region are also starting to
ship their cargoes through Masbate instead of Cebu or Manila
to further cut on transportation costs.
“Masbate is a smaller version of the North Harbor. More
and more businesses in the region are shifting (to us),”
Taggueg explained.
“We anticipate to grow by at least 5% in our containerized
business, anchored on the shipments of Nestle and the other
manufacturing firms in the regions such as Universal Robina
Corp,” he added.
Nestle maintains a warehouse in Masbate for the distribution
of its Nescafe, Coffeemate, Milo, Nestea, Nido, Bear Brand
and Nesvita products.
Last year, Masbate handled 3.61 million metric tons of cargo,
7% less compared to the 2006 volume mainly due to several
typhoons that hit the region which hampered operations.
Passenger volume also dropped to 414,156 last year from 445,574
in 2006.
Ship calls, on the other hand, rose to 4,515 in 2007 from
3,798 in 2006.
Cargo handling at the port is provided by Masbate Consolidated
Arrastre Inc.
Domestic liners that regularly call the port are Montenegro
Shipping Lines, Sulpicio Lines, WG&A Corp., Viva Shipping
Lines, R. Presado Lines, Pillejera Lines, Lucio Tee Lines
and Mae Ann Sea Lanes.
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Keppel posts 60% hike in net profit
SHIPYARD operator Keppel Philippines Marine,
Inc. (KPMI) reported a 60% increase in net profit to P135.1
million in the first quarter of the year due to higher sales.
Total revenues reached P662 million, 10% more than a year
earlier because of the continuing surge in ship repair and
conversion markets.
“This increase was due to higher revenue from shipbuilding/fabrication
and more high-value repair jobs in 2008 compared with 2007,
first quarter,” KPMI said in a report.
“Shiprepair/conversion revenue contributed 51% of the
total sales revenue while shipbuilding/fabrication activities
contributed 49% of the total sales revenue for the period,”
it added.
“The outlook for international shipping market remains
good, and the demand for shiprepair/conversion and shipbuilding/fabrication
will continue to be strong. Therefore, the company expects
to keep with its performance last year,” KPMI said.
Higher revenues pushed operating profit up 20% to P87.1 million
in the first three months of 2007 compared to the same period
previously.
Investment and net interest income and other income, meanwhile,
were lower by 9% from P14.6 million in 2007 to P13.3 million
for the period in review due to lower interest income generated
from short-term placements and due to foreign exchange loss.
Associated companies turned in a positive performance for
the period, showing an increase of P30.8 million due to higher
net income of the Subic Shipyard.
This year, KPMI expects better business anchored on its fabrication
line, which complements the company’s floating production,
storage and offloading (FPSO) business. It is also looking
at building specialized vessels.
The continued conversion of local single-hulled tankers into
double-hulled is expected to contribute significantly to operations
this year.
“We are also expanding our shipbuilding portfolio to
include specialized vessels as well as aim for more high-value
contract in shipbuilding, offshore oil rig fabrication, ship
repair and conversion,” KPMI said.
“A present trend is the conversion of single-hull tanker
to dry bulk carrier. Our Subic Shipyard is focusing on this
type of conversion that employs the existing technical competency
available in the yard,” it added.
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Forwarders push for transition period
THE Philippine International Seafreight
Forwarders Association (PISFA) is asking the Philippine Shippers’
Bureau (PSB) for a transition period to comply with new PSB
accreditation requirements.
The window would buy forwarders time to comply with new requirements,
ensuring there are no delays in their operations, the association
said.
It may be recalled that the PSB increased the capitalization
requirement for new players in the freight forwarding business
to eliminate fly-by-night players. The capital requirement
for new freight forwarders is P4 million from the previous
P500,000. Existing freight forwarders have until end 2009
to comply.
“The PSB should issue provisional certificates to companies
that show interest to comply instead of waiting for all the
necessary documents before acting on the request,” PISFA
president Dexter Yu told PortCalls.
“This will not only facilitate the process but provide
extra time for forwarders to decide which of the categories
they want to operate as — whether as NVOCC (non vessel
operating common carrier) or IFF (international freight forwarder),”
Yu added.
“If PSB decides to continue with its process, we see
more delays in the movement of goods in the country,”
he explained.
The PSB has reportedly rejected some applications for renewal,
including those of a medium-size Japanese company for failure
to comply with minor documents.
The PSB only accepts renewal applications if they come with
a Securities and Exchange Commission certificate that the
company has complied with the new capital requirements.
Forwarders are running into problems with the new rules as
they involve not only increasing the paid-up capital but also
amending their incorporation papers. This after the PSB collapsed
the categories in the forwarding business from five to only
three. From now on, the old category cargo consolidators will
have to apply as NVOCC.
PSB, meanwhile, said the new requirements have been laid down
since 2006 and that there are no more reasons to delay compliance.
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Changi Airports eyes DMIA
CHANGI Airports International (CAI) of Singapore
is looking at investing and developing Diosdado Macapagal
International Airport (DMIA), after a Singaporean engineering
company committed to establish a $100-million maintenance,
repair and overhaul (MRO) facility within the area.
Singapore Airlines Engineering Co has secured a contract from
Clark International Airport Corp (CIAC) to establish the MRO
on a 10-hectare property in DMIA.
CAI earlier expressed interest to develop DMIA. The airport
is serviced by Tiger Airways of Singapore, Air Asia of Malaysia,
Asiana Airlines of Korea, and China Southern Airlines of China.
Hong Kong Express has also begun a thrice-weekly chartered
flight service from Clark to Hong Kong while Asian Spirit
Airlines, the first local carrier to operate out of DMIA,
offers five times a week flights to Incheon-Clark-Incheon
in South Korea.
Local carriers Southeast Asian Airlines and Cebu Pacific Airways
also operate at DMIA.
CAI is a subsidiary of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore
(CAAS), which manages and invests in airports worldwide.
“DMIA is quite promising because we have seen a lot
of improvements and the traffic is growing,” Jose V.A.
Pantangco, CAI vice president for strategic projects, said.
CIAC expects an increase in passenger capacity in DMIA from
500,000 per year to at least two million with the expansion
of the terminal.
In 2007, the DMIA welcomed 533,000 domestic and international
passengers, up from 480,000 in 2006.
CIAC will embark on the development of Terminal 2 by mid year.
The terminal will accommodate seven to eight million passengers
each year.
CAI has a global portfolio of investments in airport and airport-related
assets. CAAS is the owner-operator of Singapore’s Changi
Airport, awarded “Best Airport of the World” for
20 consecutive years.
Changi Airport is the 20th busiest airport in the world and
the fifth busiest in Asia in terms of passenger traffic.
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CDEC starts live inward foreign manifest
submission test with lines
BUREAU of Customs-accredited value-added
service provider (VASP) Cargo Data Exchange Center (CDEC)
has commenced testing of the inward foreign manifest (IFM)
submission on all Association of International Shipping Lines
(AISL) members.
The test not only involves the program’s technical aspect
but also live electronic submission of IFM between CDEC and
the carriers.
“We are almost ready. CDEC has been doing the testing
with all members of AISL the past couple of months and so
far encountered minor hitches in our testing,” CDEC
general manager Leo Morada told PortCalls.
“Hopefully, before the BOC issues its green light on
the full implementation of the IFM, both CDEC and the carriers
are 100% prepared,” Morada, who is also PortCalls’
IT columnist, said.
“Aside from the electronic submission of manifest, we
are also testing our new XML system with the shipping lines
and consolidators and expect to fully introduce these to them
in the next couple of days,” Morada said.
Customs deputy commissioner Alexander Arevalo, in an earlier
interview, said BOC will test the submission of the IFM initially
with carriers Evergreen, K-Line, Hapag Lloyd, NYK and the
American President Lines.
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