ICTSI opens first barge terminal in Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s first barge terminal which would decongest traffic in major roads is set to open next month, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said.

“We are an archipelago, so this is really a no-brainer. This should have been done a long time ago. Most of the time the roads going to the ports are congested so this will be the solution,” Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said, referring to the Cavite Gateway Terminal in Tanza.

The Cavite Gateway Terminal was privately funded by the International Container Terminal Services Inc., the listed company of billionaire Enrique Razon Jr.

The terminal, which has a capacity of 115,000 twenty-foot equivalent units, will allow transshipment of cargo from international ports in Manila to Cavite via barges and roll-on roll-off operations once it opens on Nov. 5.

By moving cargo and people out of the roads and into the waterways, the DOTr said the project would decongest traffic in major roads.

The terminal will also be integrated with other major Luzon port facilities for a cost-effective and time-bound access to the Cavite market.

The DOTr said projections indicate that the terminal would result in approximately 140,000 fewer truck trips annually.

It is also expected to reduce road traffic by almost two kilometers of trucks once fully operational.

The terminal is 11 kilometers away from the Cavite Export Processing Zone Authority, whose users could be ideal clients of the facility.

The DOTr said passenger ferry services from Cavite to Manila and vice-versa will also be made available in the future following discussions between the government and the operator.

Construction of the terminal started in October 2017 and was completed in about a year.

Barge operations have already started in September as part of the dry-run prior to full operations.

“This project is also proof that when the government and the private sector work together, beautiful things can happen,” Tugade said.