LONDON: International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) eyes to open this year four more foreign ports where it has invested over $1.1 billion. The port operator also sees record volumes this year from the operations of its Subic port. Christian Gonzalez, vice president of ICTSI, said in an interview first to open by middle of June is the company’s port in Congo, valued at $100 million. This would be followed by the operation of the long-delayed port in Colombia where ICTSI has invested $500 million.
Gonzalez said ICTSI’s Melbourne operations would soft open by October, which would pave the way for its full operations before the end of the year. ICTSI had invested $500 million for this port. Gonzalez added ICTSI plans to open its new port in Iraq but did not indicate the project cost.
ICTSI’s Matadi terminal on the Congo River, Democratic Republic of Congo will operate one berth initially,followed by a second berth and total quay line of 350 meters. Container handling capacity will be 175,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) per year, with a nine-hectare terminal area incorporating a yard area of six hectares. Aguadulce Multi-User Container Terminal at the Port of Buenaventura in Colombia will be operated by ICTSI unit Sociedad Puerto Industrial de Aguadulce S.A.The first phase of the development will yield an annual capacity of around 600,000 TEUs.
First phase development includes a 600-meter berth length with a 14.5-meter controlling depth, an 11-hectare container yard, a 250-meter coal bulk dock, conveyor belt-equipped silos and a 21-kilometer access road leading to the terminal. According to Gonzalez, Victoria International Container Terminal (VICT) in Melbourne would initially operate at a capacity of 400,000 TEUs, ramping up to full capacity of 1.1 million TEUs.
VICT is the third terminal operator at the Port of Melbourne. Phase 1 of the terminal will have one berth of 330 meters fitted with three post-Panamax ship-to-shore cranes, 23.7 hectares of yard and off-dock area with fully automated operations from the gate to the quayside to deliver an estimated capacity of 350,000 standard containers. Gonzalez said based on its contract, ICTSI would have to operate a new terminal in Iraq aside from the operation of the existing one which it took over.
Unit Basra Gateway Terminal holds a 10-year concession contract to rehabilitate, manage and operate Berth 20 and a 26-year contract to build, manage and operate the new container terminal at the Port of Umm Qasr, Iraq. At full build, the new container terminal will have a 600-meter berth and an annual capacity of 900,000 TEUs.
Meanwhile, Gonzalez said ICTSI expects its Subic port to further grow its volumes this year, without indicating numbers, but said the terminal registered volume of 120,000 TEUs in 2015. He cited the potential of Subic to handle volumes from nearby Bataan where manufacturers of high-end goods are located as well as those as far as Tarlac. This would redirect cargoes which are supposed to go via Manila ports. But Gonzalez said there should be a good road network to link Bataan and Tarlac to Subic.
