PPA: Full Manila ports decongestion seen by early next year

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Manila South Harbor. Photo courtesy of Asian Terminals Inc.
Manila South Harbor. Photo courtesy of Asian Terminals Inc.
Manila South Harbor. Photo courtesy of Asian Terminals Inc.

Utilization levels at the two Manila ports improved over the weekend and are about 1% from the 80% target despite the influx of holiday cargoes, according to the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA).

If the momentum is sustained, “we will hit our target to fully decongest the ports by early next year,” PPA general manager Atty. Juan Sta. Ana said in a statement.

The positive performance is “a clear indication that the decongestion efforts being imposed in the last couple of months are already paying off,” he said.

“Yard utilization has been significantly reduced, giving our port operators ample elbow room to maneuver to send out and take in containers compared to the condition a couple of weeks ago.

“We have likewise significantly reduced vessel queue at the Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) by at least half in the last couple of days.”

As of December 12, PPA said average yard utilization at the two terminals — MICT and Manila South Harbor — was at 81%, reaching about 66,000-twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), or just 1% above the 80% target of 65,200 TEUs set by the Cabinet Cluster on Port Congestion (CCPC).

MICT has a yard utilization of 84% or approximately 42,400 TEUs, while South Harbor has 77% or about 23,800 TEUs, the agency added.

Likewise, the number of vessels in queue, excluding those at berth, had been reduced to a combined total of 16, down from a high of 30 a few weeks ago, PPA said.

As of December 12, MICT had six vessels at berth with 12 vessels in queue, while South Harbor had four vessels at berth and four vessels waiting in anchorage.

PPA noted that toward the end of November, yard utilization levels even breached the 80% target by sliding to 78%, only to inch back up to above 80% the subsequent weekend.

PPA, along with the CCPC headed by Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, is negotiating with the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and the Metro Manila Council to allow trucks to ply Roxas Boulevard even beyond Dec 22.

MMDA starting Dec 3 imposed a six-month ban on the use of Roxas Boulevard by cargo trucks in anticipation of traffic brought about by the holiday season and the papal visit set for next month. This ban has resulted in a decline in the combined container gate-outs from MICT and South Harbor of at least 10% from an average 7,000 TEUs to 6,200 TEUs, PPA said.

But from Dec 17 to 22, MMDA ordered a reprieve from the ban, allowing cargo trucks to use Roxas Boulevard but only from midnight to 5 a.m.

Weekend pullouts

Meanwhile, the 10-day Christmas break covering Dec 24-28 and Dec 30 to January 4, 2015 “will definitely clog the ports with incoming import cargoes and could bring yard utilization back to congestion level.”

PPA is therefore asking importers and cargo owners to withdraw their shipments and, if possible, double pullouts to prevent the ports from hitting congestion levels again.

“I am urging all our importers, brokers, truckers, freight forwarders, cargo owners, and other stakeholders to withdraw their cargoes early or double their volume withdrawals as a pre-emptive measure against a potential congestion brought about by the holidays,” Sta. Ana said.

“Our port operators will be operating 24/7 except New Year’s Day as vessels continue to come even during this Holiday Season,” Sta. Ana said.

He added the Bureau of Customs (BOC) is also “crafting operational measures to guarantee they can clear cargoes even during the holidays.”

BOC had earlier announced it will be closed from Dec 25 to 28 and from Jan 1 to 4, 2015. Stakeholders had aired concern over the announced closure of BOC, saying it will result in high yard utilization at Manila ports. – Roumina Pablo