NEWSFLASH
Manila port status: still congested
18 December 2014
On 17 November 2014, GPCCI released its special newsletter entitled “Manila port congestion still a trade bottleneck one year after” that gives a comprehensive overview of the Manila port congestion issue. We are proud to announce that the said newsletter has been widely circulated to a significant number of key stakeholders including our Members, German and Philippine institutions and organizations, Philippine Cabinet and government officials, as well as other relevant concerned parties within the shipping industry and various sectors.
The GPCCI special newsletter has indeed been a credible and valuable source of information in communicating our mutual appeal and lobby toward port normalization to the competent Philippine authorities!
A full month after its release and receipt of substantial feedback from our broad network, GPCCI is back to give you the latest updates regarding the issue for the month of December.
Manila truck ban revived!
Stakeholders were quite relieved by the lifting of the controversial Manila truck ban last 13 September 2014, but it seems that the respite came too soon as a six-month truck ban on Roxas Boulevard starting 3 December 2014 was recently announced by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).
According to MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino, the said directive was approved in anticipation of upcoming major events such as:
· the papal visit of Pope Francis from 15 to 19 January 2015,
· the yearly tradition of the Feast of the Black Nazarene on January 9, and
· the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit, whose meetings will be taking place in major Philippine cities including Metro Manila; and will last from December 2014 until November 2015.
Given that the above-mentioned events are indeed relevant by nature, and owing to the fact that these would certainly attract a large number of people (e.g. visitors, devotees, delegates, etc.), these events would highly result in additional human and vehicular congestion within the Metro.
For further information and purpose of comparison, however, it has to be stated – first and foremost – that the truck trip along Roxas Boulevard normally took 45 minutes, while the re-routing due to the re-implemented truck ban will now take three (3) hours. The reinstatement of the truck ban, therefore, will only cause heavier traffic jams not only along Roxas Boulevard, but also in other areas. Moreover, in as much as the statements regarding the future events are true, major points have to be raised on behalf of the stakeholders, who are still very much affected by the developments related to the Manila port congestion.
The MMDA directive for the implementation of the six-month truck ban along Roxas Boulevard is another ingeniously conceptualized BAD idea.
Similar to the implementation of Ordinance Number 8336 (Manila Truck Ban) and Executive Order 172 (Declaration of Subic and Batangas ports as alternate ports to Manila), the truck ban in Roxas Boulevard was announced without any advance notification and/or prior consultation with the respective interested parties.
Furthermore, it seems that even the local government of the City of Manila was taken aback by this announcement. In a recent phone interview with Philippine Daily Inquirer, Vice Mayor “Isko Moreno” Domagoso stated that “they will definitely be seeking an explanation from MMDA” for the latter’s “lack of consultation”.
It has to be reiterated, though, that all national roads are actually under the mandate of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). As its own website states, “the DOTC is the primary policy, planning, programming, coordinating, implementing and administrative entity of the executive branch of the government on the promotion, development and regulation of a dependable and coordinated network of transportation and communications systems, as well as in the fast, safe, efficient and reliable transportation and communications services. (…) The DOTC plays a crucial role in accelerating the country’s economic development.”
This only substantiates that Vice Mayor Domagoso’s rhetorical question on “whatever happened to (…) local autonomy?” does not apply, on the basis of MMDA’s lack of communication with their respective local government unit (LGU). In such cases, LGUs and other transportation agencies (e.g. MMDA) should have coordinated and communicated with the DOTC prior to the implementation of any directive that will be of significant national interest. The notion of being circumvented should not be the bottom line here, as all major decisions should support the backbone of DOTC’s “crucial role in accelerating the Philippines’ economic development”.
Another notable point is the timeline of the re-imposed truck ban’s implementation. As stated by MMDA Chairman Tolentino, the enforcement of the truck ban is due to major upcoming events - two of which are not taking place until the New Year comes. Why then should a truck ban be re-imposed within a period of six (6) months, during the hype of the Christmas season, and for events that will only last for a week or two at the most (i.e. Feast of Black Nazarene and Papal Visit)? As for the APEC Summit 2015, the Department of Tourism’s official website indicates other major cities in the Philippines, which were identified by the APEC National Organizing Council (NOC) as potential meeting sites like Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, Clark, Subic, Tagaytay, etc. that also included tentative schedules. This means that the APEC Summit’s activities will not be concentrated solely within Metro Manila.
As of the writing of this article, it was announced that a reprieve on the re-imposed truck ban on Roxas Blvd. will be lifted from 17 to 22 December 2014. As much as the temporary break from the truck ban is a positive development during this busy season, the question of “what happens afterwards?” is still prevalent.
It seems that with GPCCI’s previous statement of expected port normalization within the next six (6) months, some government agencies took the hint in creating yet another major unexpected cause of delay.
Current Port Facts and Figures
The Asian Terminals Inc. (ATI), a publicly-listed port operator, developer and investor in the Philippines has recently reported its status of zero backlog in connection with berthing vessels. ATI is the responsible authority that operates the Manila South Harbor, the Port of Batangas, as well as the Port of General Santos. According to its report, ATI can now accommodate additional vessels that are awaiting berth in the International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI). ICTSI, however, still has more than 20 vessels waiting for berthing at Manila International Container Terminal (MICT).
As of 12 December 2014 at 0700H, the ATI-SH Report released the ff. updates:
Category Status
Yard Full 84%
Yard Empty 75%
GMPH (Gross Moves per Hour) around 19
Import Dwell Time (average last 24hrs.) 9 days
Export Dwell Time (average last 24hrs.) 7 days
Off Window Vessels 90%
Vessels at Anchorage (Current) 7
Gate Activities (transaction last 24hrs.) 1,210 gate in / 1,059 gate out
On the other hand, as of 12 December 2014 at 0700H, the MICT Situation Report released the ff. updates (in red):
Category Operations during Port Congestion Normal Operations
December 2014 November 2014 w/o Port Congestion
Yard Utilization 84.44% 94.63% 75-80%
MTD Average Crane Productivity 20.00 16.97 24 Moves
Import Dwell Time 18.57 19.49 Days 5 days
Off Window Vessels 100% 100% 0 (Zero)
Export Dwell Time 8.77 Days 8.42 Days 4
Vessels Waiting at Pilot Station 12 29 0 (Zero)
MTD Average TEU IN by Trucks 2,667 2,276
MTD Average TEU OUT by Trucks 3,166 2,763
Overstaying Containers (over 30 days) 3,528 TEU 4,427 TEU
Empty Container Inventory (Export Empty) 15,414 TEU 10,442 TEU
The data shows that the congestion within the Port of Manila is improving, but far from being fully resolved.
Shipping lines are still very much struggling with around 74,000 incoming TEUs of empty containers, as container yards that are close to the port remain full.
As of 07 December 2014, the Container Yard summary report released by the Association of International Shipping Lines (AISL) indicated the ff. in relation to the use of additional container yards from the private sector (CDAP and non-CDAP Members):
Off dock container yards inside Metro Manila (Active CDAP Members)
Name of Off Dock Land Area (sqm) Capacity in TEUs
ACJ Container Terminal Inc. 10,000 1,900
RAO Container Services, Inc. 8,600 (CY 1) 1,600
7,000 (CY 2) 1,000
SUNWORLD Logistics Corp. 5,000 800
IRS Eastern Inc. 14,000 (CY 1) 2,000
13,000 (CY 2) 1,800
17,000 (CEZ 1) 2,500
(Continuation of Off dock Container Yards Inside Metro Manila Report from previous page)
10,000 (CEZ 2) 1,200
25,000 (CY 4) 3,000
40,000 (CY 5) 6,000
45,000 (CY 6) 7,000
Movers & Managers 8,000 900
PHILEX Logistics, Inc. 12,000 1,800
Seacontainer Depot Corporation 40,000 5,500
Interpacific Highway Transport Corporation 50,000 6,000
50,000 5,000
Off dock container yards inside Metro Manila (Non-CDAP Members)
Name of Off Dock Land Area (sqm) Capacity in TEUs
Trans Ocean 27,000 3,200
BOCDI 20,000 2,000
South Port Container Yard 30,000 2,000
Marina One 12,000 1,500
One Stop Logistics 30,000 2,000
TOTAL Land Area 473,600 58,700
Other Port-related Updates
Approval of Senate Bill No. 2364
Senate Bill No. 2364, which was brought about by the fervent appeal from the concerned parties in the export sector, amends Section 1009 of Presidential Decree No. 1464, otherwise known as the Tariff and Customs Code of 1978 for reform within the shipping industry.
Described in length as “an act exempting the carriage of container vans from the provisions of Section 1009 of Presidential Decree No. 1464, otherwise known as the Tariff and Customs Code of 1978, and for other purposes”, the Senate Bill aims to permit foreign ships to call in multiple ports on the condition that their cargoes are for import and export; and have been duly cleared by the Commissioner of Customs. The bill also permits the co-loading of importers and exporters on foreign ships that are going in and out of the Philippines.
The said Senate Bill that was filed on 19 August 2014 by Senator Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV indicates its effectivity of “15 days after its publication in the official gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation”.
More information regarding this Senate Bill may be found in the Senate of the Philippines’ official website, under the link: http://www.senate.gov.ph/lisdata/1967216797!.pdf
Empty Containers/Empties: 150-day or 60-day Rule on the Staying Period in the Philippines?
Shipping lines and truckers, as well as other key stakeholders within the network of port operations cried foul over the claim that empty containers of shipping lines were the cause of the ongoing port congestion. The shipping industry’s intense promotion and clarification of this misconception doubled the pressure for the respective Cabinet Cluster on Port Congestion, which eventually led to the possibility of decreasing the length of stay of empty containers (empties) from 150 days to 60 days.
AISL was taken aback by this proposition since just mid of this year the Commissioner of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) signified the authority’s intention of granting AISL’s request for an extension of one (1) year due to the port congestion. Shipping lines are still suffering from the current condition of outbound empty container shipments, and are vehemently objecting to the reduction of the 150-day staying period.
In anticipation of yet another potential challenge and to clarify its stand in relation to the empty containers, the AISL Board immediately met with the Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Gregory Domingo recently. During the meeting Secretary Domingo was filled in with the actual status, as well as how shipping lines are addressing the issue regarding empty containers.
To fully maximize the effect of this meeting, a one-on-one dialogue with Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, who chairs the Cabinet Cluster on Port Congestion, was also scheduled on 17 December 2014.
Further updates regarding the dialogue are yet to be coordinated with the respective organization.
Bureau of Customs (BOC) Strikes Again…
Despite the whole hullabaloo and commotion that is happening due to the port congestion, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) through some of its officers, nevertheless, doesn’t fail to make use of any negative situation to its advantage - and simply contribute to the problem.
Following the distress caused by the increase of empty containers that are lined up for immediate outbound shipment within the port and in off dock container yards, the BOC recognized this as the perfect time to implement more strict rules in the processing of the Special Permit to Load.
Many shipping lines see this action as another way of further aggravating the port situation through the application of inflexible screening requirements.
GPCCI, hence, supports AISL’s initiative to gather relevant feedbacks from its Members in connection with the said stringent rules for the loading permits of empty containers. The collected feedbacks will be used in order to justify the unfair and untimely execution of such rules to the BOC’s top officials.
Corruption Control and Reduction Measures in the Return of Empty Containers
One cannot argue that with the event of the continuing port congestion, corruption incidents seem to have also propagated. In order to curb the current state of affairs, various trucking organizations such as the Confederation of Truckers Association of the Philippines (CTAP), the Alliance of Concerned Truck Owners and Organizations (ACTOO), the Container Depot Alliance of the Philippines (CDAP) met in a series of meaningful discussions hosted by the AISL for the establishment of preventive and reduction measures against malpractice and corruption incidents.
It was settled that all personnel of off dock empty container yards must show/bear an official identification (i.e. IDs) for recognition and proof of identity should a complaint be filed. While this preventive measure may not necessarily end corruption within port operations – particularly in the return of empty containers – this measure may still limit possible incidents.
Development of a Web-based Application for the Return of Empty Containers
A web-based application for the return of empty containers is currently being developed by the Cargo Data Exchange Center (CDEC), whose services were commissioned by AISL. Founded in 1995 as a pioneer in Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), CDEC established itself as one of the heads of technology development of e-Commerce applications, not only for transport and logistics industries but also for the entire trading community in the Philippines.