Overstaying containers moved out of Manila ports

MANILA, Philippines - Overstaying containers are being moved out of the congested ports of Manila to Subic Bay Freeport ahead of the expected upsurge in cargo movement during the Christmas season.

General Manager Juan Sta. Ana of the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) said the vessel MV Asterix shipped out yesterday 1,154 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) to Subic Freeport from the Manila International Container Terminal (MICT).

The chartered vessel is expected to return over the weekend to remove the remaining containers, he added.

The PPA and the Bureau of Customs (BOC), along with port operators International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) and Asian Terminals Inc., have identified about 3,000 TEUs for removal from the ports of Manila.

Sta. Ana said the shipping out of overstaying containers is one of the measures aimed at unclogging the ports of Manila before the start of the peak season.

“This will enable the port of Manila to have sufficient port space to take in the influx of cargoes needed for the Christmas season that is expected to come in towards the end of next month,” he said.

Sta. Ana said overstaying containers would be transferred to the ports of Batangas and Subic if the owners would not remove them within five days from notice.

“This will be complemented by the increase in storage fees that will encourage shippers to get their cargoes immediately instead of leaving it inside and use the ports as virtual warehouses,” he said.

Sta. Ana said the productivity and efficiency of the two ports in Manila are slowly returning to normal.

“While it seems that we have a shortage in yard space, it doesn’t mean we don’t have enough capacity,” he said.

“We have the capacity, we just have to work at a slower pace compared to last year.” 

Sta. Ana said utilization rate at the ports of Manila is expected to improve to 88 percent towards the end of the week.

The productivity and efficiency at MICT have already reached 20 movements an hour from 12 an hour two months ago, he added. That of South Harbor jumped to 15 movements an hour from only eight, Sta. Ana said.

The PPA is looking at a 10-fold increase in storage fees to decongest the ports of Manila. Cargoes staying beyond 15 days at port are seized.

Fees for unclaimed cargo would increase to P5,000 from the current P500 for 20-foot containers; P8,750 from P842 for 35-foot containers; P10,000 from P962.60 for 40-foot containers; and P11,250 from P1,082.90 for 45-foot containers.

At present, importers, exporters and brokers have a five-day grace period after BOC clearance to remove their containers.

Thereafter a storage fee would be imposed starting on the sixth day. Beyond 15 days, the cargo would be seized in favor of the government.

PPA is mulling on reducing the grace period.

The MICT of ICTSI has an annual capacity of 2.5 million but only handled about 1.1 million TEUs.  

South Harbor has so far handled 800,000 TEUs compared to its annual capacity of 1.1 million TEUs.

The PPA, along with the port operators, is trying to maintain the number of empties inside the ports at 12,000 TEUs.

As of end June, the number of loaded containers piling up at the ports of Manila totaled 85,000 TEUs.

They have occupied about 104 percent of the port yards, while total empty containers  reached a high of 22,000 TEUs.