Lawmaker questions PPA decision on 'renovations' of existing ports

MANILA, Philippines - A ranking administration lawmaker questioned yesterday the decision of the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) to allocate billions of pesos for “renovations” of existing ports instead of constructing more modular ports badly needed in many parts of the country.

Negros Occidental Rep. Alfredo Benitez, vice chairman of the House committee on transportation, cited the case of the Banago port in Bacolod City to which the PPA is set to spend P700 million for renovations.

He said another port, the BREDCO Port, already services the area and the funding would be better utilized to build new, smaller ports. “It does not make sense to have two ports in Bacolod when there are other areas which require ports more urgently,” Benitez said.

He also said that instead of devoting large amounts to modernizing existing ports, “it is eminently more useful to establish missionary routes by creating new ones, even if they are smaller.”

Earlier, the management of Victorias Milling Corp. pointed out the need to renovate the Tuburan port in E.B. Magalona town, which primarily handles the movement of sugarcane, fishing, rice, and agriculture from Iloilo and nearby provinces.  

E.B. Magalona Mayor David Albert Lacson indicated that renovation of the said port would involve P300 million.  For the renovation of Banago port, the PPA has earmarked almost P1 billion, which include P200 million for the construction of roll-on, roll-off (RoRo) facilities, and P761 million for reclamation, ports offices, weighing facilities, road networks, and other commercial areas.

“These large amounts could be used to build more, if smaller, feeder RoRo ports throughout the Visayas,” Benitez said. “In fairness, (PPA) General Manager Juan Sta. Ana has agreed to study if this budget can be spread out to develop more ports,” he said.

While the PPA has no new port construction projects planned until 2012, the current port strategy emphasizes upgrading existing ports into “gateway” ports that could service increased local and international cargo and passenger traffic.

According to Benitez, the problem with this is that port services remain contained within a limited area. He cited numerous studies, including from the Asian Development Bank, on the need for more cost-effective steel modular RoRo ports in the Philippines being an archipelago.

“Beyond a certain distance, it becomes very expensive for businessmen and farmers to haul their goods to the few ports in the area, making it economically unviable,” he said. “I think a better strategy would be to create nearby ports that promote linkages,” he said.

The lawmaker pointed out the RoRo technology offered by the French government was “particularly suitable” in its role as ports for social reform.

“Their modularity is a unique feature and they can be redeployed elsewhere should the need arise. I believe this is clearly a superior alternative to concrete ports that, as evidenced by the number of PPA contracts, require expensive renovations within their 40 year life-span,” he said.

The French steel modular RoRo ports are rated to last 80 years, Benitez said.

He said it is not necessarily a choice between having a mix of gateway ports or feeder ports. “There is no conflict,” he said. “By bringing affordable port services to a greater area of the country, these ports will be instrumental in increasing the traffic in gateway ports. That’s why they are called gateways.”