Shipping lines urge PPA to identify areas for depots

MANILA, Philippines - International shipping lines are asking the government to identify areas near the North and South harbors where depots could be established to bring down additional costs brought about by the truck ban imposed by the city government of Manila.

Patrick Ronas, president of the Association of International Shipping Lines (AISL), has asked the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) to identify areas near the ports to put up new depots to allow cost efficiency in transporting cargoes.

Ronas pointed out that there are several depots owned by private contractors and not by shippers.

He said shipping lines have to convince private contractors to operate their depots for 24 hours to accommodate truckers returning their containers.

According to him, there was a move by contractors to look for space in the North or South harbors as an alternative for locating the depots but the only problem would be the distance.

At the recent transport and logistics summit, the private sector pushed the setting up of alternative depots to address congestion of cargoes.

Exporting and importing firms as well as service providers of transport and logistics and allied services contributed to the drafting of the resolution which aims to attain a sustainable solution on removing barriers in cargo transport and customs procedures.

Among the proposed measures include the creation of alternative depots, maximization of Batangas and Subic ports, the 24/7 operations by the customs agency, the removal of the truck ban, the connection of the North and Luzon expressways, and facilitation of road network constructions.

Ronas said shipping lines were caught with surprise when the truck ban was imposed which resulted to additional costs. 

“For every four containers that come in, only one goes out.  We were not spared of the additional costs,” he noted.

He pointed out that the decision to call or not on the Batangas Port or Subic Port is based on economies of scale and not as a result of state policies

Since freight deals are decided abroad, Ronas explained that it is only natural that economies of scale factor heavily in the decision-making of foreign principals.

He said premiums or the extra costs on operating in the ports of Batangas and Subic would disappear once the flow of trade takes progress in those areas.

He explained that the ports in Cebu, Davao and Cagayan De Oro were historically having a premium of $350 to $400 per cargo at the time that international feeders were non-existent.

However, he said the cost was eventually eliminated after the ports in Cebu, Davao, and Cagayan de Oro experienced growth in trade.

Foreign shippers have also done their part to ease the current problem of truckers who are being charged with penalties for illegal parking when they could not comply with the truck ban during the hours to traverse Manila to their container yards.