The private-sector group working to eliminate the congestion at the sea gateways in Manila forecasts that the capital’s sea terminals would breach their full capacity in January due to the slow movement of cargoes from the ports to the market.
In a media briefing, Port Congestion Multisectoral Working Group (PC-MWG) Chairman Ernesto M. Ordoñez described the phenomenon as a “nightmare” that would result in lesser products in the marketplace.
He lamented the potential evaporation of the gains from the joint efforts of the government and the private sector to eradicate the bottleneck at the ports.
“The port congestion will let our investments suffer; and everyone will suffer,” Ordoñez said.
The slow movement of cargoes, he said, would result in a drastic increase in yard utilization, which would breach the full capacity of the two ports combined.
Port utilization will be at 107 percent by January 5 should the measures addressing the slow withdrawal of cargoes fail. “This is worse than what we had at the height of the Manila truck ban when congestion was at 105 percent,” Ordoñez lamented.
Over the weekend, the combined yard utilization at the two Manila Ports—composed of the Manila International Container Terminal and the Manila South Harbor— fell below the 80-percent threshold set by the Cabinet Cluster on Port Congestion, when utilization reached 77 percent.
However, on Sunday, yard utilization went back to 86 percent after only 1,029 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) were withdrawn from the average of 6,500 to 7,000 TEUs daily gate outs.
His group, the official said, is still trying to save the gains that the government and the private sector achieved over the past month by issuing a plea of quick action on several fronts.
One of the plans is to ask the Bureau of Internal Revenue to streamline the accreditation to eliminate seven unnecessary and cumbersome data requirements for the issuance of Import Commodity Clearance that will allow a speedier flow of goods.
The group is also asking shipping lines to find space for the empty containers that clog the movement of goods.
“Shipping lines should invest in more container yards,” he said.
Ordoñez said his group is also calling on government agencies, banks and the businesses to remain open during the holidays to ease the expected spike in port utilization.
Importers and cargo owners, meanwhile, should keep pace with the speed at which containers are piling at the port and stop operations only on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, the businessman added.
“We are hoping, if it is possible, for the government to decrease the rates during holidays so that importers will be encouraged to operate during breaks and holidays,” Ordoñez noted.
Not would the congestion at the ports worsen during the holidays, it is also expected to rise during the visit of Pope Francis on January 15, 16 and 19, as major roads and ports will be closed to make way for the Roman Pontiff.
Earlier, the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) asked cargo owners to withdraw their cargoes from the Manila-based ports earlier than scheduled to ease the expected rise during the holidays.
PPA General Manager Juan C. Sta. Ana said the nine-day holiday from December 24 to 28 and from December 30 to January 4 will definitely clog the ports with incoming import cargoes seen to bring yard utilization back “to near-congestion level.”
He explained that the private sector will play a key role in sustaining the decongestion effort of the government, otherwise, all measures implemented will be flushed down the drain due to the holidays.
Port operators will be operating 24 hours daily except on New Year’s Day, as vessels continue to come in even during this holiday season, while the customs bureau is likewise crafting operational measures to guarantee it can clear cargoes even during the holidays.
The Cabinet Cluster on Port Congestion and the shipping lines led by the Association of International Shipping Lines met on Tuesday “to come up with a win-win solution in the reduction of empty containers currently piled up in different areas in and out of the Metro Manila.”
The report is yet to be released as of press time. A study commissioned by the joint House Committees on Transportation and Metro Manila Development showed that the economy loses P2.5 billion daily due to the port congestion.
With Jae Denise Adolfo