MANILA: Philippines International Container Terminal Services Incorporated, the Philippines’ largest port operator, has upgraded the capacities of its Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) and the Subic Bay International Terminal (SBIT) to deal with growing container volumes coming in and out of Luzon.
The company owned by gaming and port mogul Enrique Razon has deployed 4 new generation reach stackers at ICTSI’s flagship MICT and in the new container terminals 1 and 2 at the Subic Bay Freeport. Terminals 1 and 2 at the Subic Bay Freeport are operated by its subsidiaries: Subic Bay International Terminal Corporation and ICTSI Subic Incorporated, respectively. MICT, meanwhile, has an annual capacity of 4.2 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs). In December 2014, the government gave assurances that the Manila ports will be fully decongested by early 2015.
The government and the private sector need to clear only about 1% of its current cargo volume to breach the 80% target level, Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) general manager Juan Sta Ana said. The addition of these stackers brings the total of mobile containers to 27, all handling equipment deployed at the MICT and Subic terminals, and making it the largest fleet in the Philippines to date. Known as the Gloria or G-generation model, these 5-generation reach stackers are the first of their kind in the Asia-Pacific region. They are supplied and manufactured by Kalmar, the port equipment and technology unit of Cargotec Oy of Finland.
The reach stackers are the most energy efficient available in the market today, featuring 3 ECO modes and an automatic stop-start function that reduces emissions and boosts fuel efficiency by up to 10%, Kalmar said. ICTSI is the first customer to order Kalmar Gloria reach stackers in Asia so soon after the launch in the region, according to Kalmar Asia sales director Bjorn Johansson. “We have enjoyed considerable success in launching Gloria into other key territories and the product has now become the benchmark for reach stacker performance throughout the industry,” Jonasson said.
The partnership with Kalmar would improve port operations because they appreciate the dynamics of the business and provide solutions that boost productivity while reducing operating cost, ICTSI purchasing director Antonio Coronel said. “We have an ambitious development strategy to become one of the world’s leading port management companies and on the same global stage. Kalmar is clearly a trusted partner,” Coronel added. As of October 2014, ICTSI has poured $500 million worth of capital expenditures, including an additional $200 million for its sixth berth. It currently has a portfolio of 29 container terminal operations in 21 countries across 6 continents.
