Call to reduce number of port operators at Kwai Chung
November 29, 2012 Category Logistics, Ports & sea transport
The number of port operators at Hong Kong’s Kwai Chung container terminal should be reduced if Hong Kong port is to maintain its operating efficiencies after the introduction of ultra-large container ships, Eric Ip, Deputy Managing Director of Hutchison Port Holdings, said. Having five terminal operators at Kwai Chung was “a bit old fashioned”, especially as several operators only had one or two berths each, he added. Container ships have increased in size in recent years, requiring more quay length and berthing space, Ip told delegates at the Asian Logistics and Maritime conference in Wan Chai. A 5,000 TEU box ship, which was the biggest of its type several years ago, took up about 250 meters of quay when berthed and required 300 m to maneuver while berthing and leaving the quay. But Maersk will introduce 18,000 TEU container ships from next year that will take up 400 m of quay and require 500 m to maneuver. Several container lines, including Orient Overseas Container Lines and Cosco Container Lines, have in service or on order slightly smaller vessels of 13,000 to 14,000 TEU but which still require 350 to 400 m of quay each. DP World-NWS controls container terminal 3, which has a single 305 m berth. DP World is also the majority owner of Asia Container Terminal, which operates two berths with a combined length of 740 m at container terminal Eight West, while Cosco-HIT has two berths totaling 640 m at container terminal Eight East. Ip said there was a need for “a certain rationalization in Hong Kong port”. The new ships were so big they could not call at all ports and there would be an increase in transshipment cargo from smaller Asian ports to hubs such as Hong Kong. Alan Lee, head of the Hong Kong Container Terminal Operators Association whose five members operate the nine terminals at Kwai Chung port, asked for his reaction to Ip’s rationalization plan, said: “This is the first time I’ve heard about it.” Ip also questioned who benefited from the use of ultra-large box ships, pointing out that they posed a challenge for shipping lines and terminal operators, which need to invest in strengthening existing berths or building new infrastructure, the South China Morning Post reports.
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