ICTSI bares plans to raise MICT capacity by 20%, open ICD

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MICT Berth Aprilshot7International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) said it is fast-tracking construction of a yard facility at the Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) and an inland container depot (ICD) in Laguna.

ICTSI in a statement said building these facilities is in anticipation of a trade surge as the Philippine economy sustains its robust growth and comes after the government approved the development of more yards and roads, and is despite the 40% spike in cargo movements at its flagship port.

The expansion projects will add more than 20% to the existing static yard capacity at MICT without impacting traffic patterns, ICTSI said.

“Even in its earliest stages of development, the new ICD alone will add new laden, empty, and warehousing capacity to the market, and will deliver a further 250,000-TEU capacity to MICT,” Christian Gonzalez, ICTSI head for Asia, Pacific and the Sub Continent, said.

The 21-hectare Laguna ICD is one of two 20-hectare properties that ICTSI purchased to be developed into ICDs. Development will begin in November with the first phases available for use in February 2015.

“These plans have been on the drawing board, ready for execution, and we were just waiting for government concurrence,” Gonzalez noted. “Now that we have it, and we have the resources, we can move quickly to fast-track these projects.”

 

Push for a new berth

Gonzalez further revealed that ICTSI has the plans and the attendant resources to build a new berth and expressed hopes the government will “revisit” the plan to develop this facility. “A new berth is pivotal for incremental capacity to address economic expansion for many years down the line,” Gonzalez explained.

The planned yard at MICT will be equipped with at least six rubber-tired gantries (RTGs), even as there are also plans to purchase RTGs and rail-mounted gantries for the Laguna ICD.

Moreover, while the two yards are being developed, an adjacent temporary empty handling area at MICT will also be put into operation by November 1.

Without further changes to the road network or additional truck restrictions, the completion of these new yards will raise the overall capacity of Manila’s two international ports to 4.2 million TEUs. Asian Terminal Inc.’s South Harbor has a declared capacity of 1.2 million TEUs, ICTSI noted.

Furthermore, ICTSI will also incorporate rail provisions into the new MICT yard to augment the Laguna ICD. Thus, the ICD will be linked to MICT by road, and later, by rail, to ensure the most seamless transfer of cargo from the Port of Manila to the economic zones south of Metro Manila.

ICTSI said the expansion of MICT and the building of the ICD will be complemented by plans to raise the capacity of its Subic terminals to establish the latter as Northern and Central Luzon’s next gateway port and “not a mere spillover terminal.”

During the Northern Luzon Shipping Summit on September 29, Subic Bay International Terminal Corp outgoing general manager Reimond Silvestre told PortCalls they intend to add more yard equipment such as rubber tired-gantries, reach stackers and prime movers at the Subic port.

 

Subic eyes new terminal

Meanwhile, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority chairman Roberto Garcia at the same Summit said there are plans to construct a new terminal at Subic port once volume demands more space. Currently, New Container Terminals 1 and 2 have an annual capacity of 600,000 TEUs and have handled 24,309 TEUS for the first eight months of 2014.

ICTSI and its partner liners are further connecting Subic to Japan, Singapore, China, and, further on, to Europe and the Middle East, according to the port operator. Currently, Subic’s regular callers, APL and Wan Hai Lines, connect the northern Luzon port to Kaohsiung.

The port operator also noted a study recently published in PortCalls stating that timely investments of the country’s port operators have enabled its total port capacity to keep pace with growth in trade, even as it noted that the existing capacity is not yet 100% utilized.

The report titled “Port and Road Infrastructure for Greater Luzon Trade” said capacity utilization at both MICT and South Harbor without the hindrance of any road regulation remains below 80%.

Close to 1.8 million TEUs passed through MICT last year, representing 72% of its total capacity of 2.5 million, while almost 922,000 TEUs went through South Harbor, or 77% of its 1.2-million capacity.

“Today overall available international container terminal capacity in Manila is 3.7 million TEUs per year against a throughput in 2013 of just over 2.7 million TEUs, highlighting that timely investment by the private sector has kept the demand-supply ratio well in balance,” the report said.

“The development of new yard and road facilities at MICT, for which foundation work has already been undertaken, will raise annual international terminal capacity to 3 million TEUs per year at MICT and to 4.2 million TEUs per year overall for the international terminals,” it added. — Roumina Pablo

Photo courtesy of ICTSI