SBMA cuts port fees to attract users

MANILA, Philippines - The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has cut port fees to encourage greater utilization of Subic’s port.

SBMA chairman Roberto Garcia announced yesterday that the agency is set to reduce the harbor fee at Subic’s New Container Terminal to $0.008 per gross register tonnage (GRT) from $0.046 per GRT and the berthing fee to $0.004 GRT, daily from $0.0345 per GRT a day.

The new rates, which would apply at Subic’s New Container Terminal (NCT) 1 and and 2, are effective for six months starting Oct. 1.

The NCT-1 is currently being used by regular shippers like Yokohama Tires and HLD Pipes, while NCT-2 has been reserved for overstaying container vans as an extension of the Port of Manila.

Garcia said the new rates would be implemented following the declaration of Subic Bay and Batangas ports as extensions of the Port of Manila under Executive Order (EO) 172.

The EO was issued to address the congestion at Manila’s ports.

After the six-month period, the rates would increase to $0.041 for harbor fees and $0.02 for berthing fees.

Given the rate reduction scheme, the SBMA expects to lose $10 to $15 million worth of uncollected harbor and berthing fees during the implementation of the program.

“But we hope to recoup the losses in the long run, as we’re also doing this to encourage new lines to come over, as well as to show our appreciation to existing shipping lines that had stuck with Subic in all its lean years,” Garcia said.

To further attract shippers and shipping lines in Subic, SBMA is in talks with shipping lines, locators and port users and working on a simplified accreditation process for port-related services and systems integration for real-time monitoring and management of container inventory.

The SBMA is also planning a P2.1-billion bypass road to accommodate growing container traffic, as well as having a one-stop shop to facilitate release of shipments and minimize corruption.

Garcia said SBMA expects the Subic port to have as much as 70,000 containers this year compared to 38,000 last year, as overstaying containers in Manila ports are being moved to there for temporary storage.