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PTP bucks shipping downtrend

KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 – Whilst most ports in the region are expecting to see a drop in their throughput volume this year, Malaysia’s leading container terminal, the Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP), in Johor, is expecting quite the opposite.

PTP is currently ranked among the top 20 busiest container terminals in the world. Despite the current gloomy global economy, PTP, which successfully inked an agreement recently with French liner CMA CGM (CMA) recently, expects to handle this year 6.1 million TEUs, up 9 per cent from the 5.6 million TEUs in 2008.

Under the terms of the agreement, PTP will provide container terminal services to CMA to handle some of its regional transshipment cargo. In fact, prior to the signing of the agreement, CMA’s vessels had already started calling PTP as a result of the “Vessel Sharing Agreement” (VSA) partnership between it and Danish liner, Maersk Line.

When asked by BERNAMA about PTP luring CMA from Port Klang’s Westport, PTP chairman Datuk Mohd Sidik Shaik Osman said: “Due to strategic reasons, CMA decided to have two hubs in this region, which effectively means it would use both Westport and PTP.”

For now, he explained, the joint services under CMA and Maersk’s VSA would contribute to approximately half a million TEUs from PTP’s total annual throughput.

“Naturally, we expect to see an increase in volume from these services as the economy recovers and world trade picks up again.

“We have sufficient terminal capacity and equipment to handle CMA vessels here at PTP, now and in the future. With our current terminal handling capacity of eight million TEUs, and the plan to increase this to 12 million TEUs within the next five years, not only can we accommodate the new volumes of CMA but also that of other shipping lines”, he added.

When asked for an opinion on PTP’s move, a shipping analyst said that the agreement to provide container terminal services to CMA, was timely and a step in the right direction for PTP.

Another analyst said: “To support its transshipment operations at PTP, CMA’s regional feeders will now need to call at the port.

“This is seen as a positive development for PTP’s feeder connectivity. Operators expected to now call at PTP would further enhance its existing feeder operator network.”

Sidik elaborated that CMA’s presence in PTP would not only further improve its connectivity to other ports within the South East Asian region, but also major ports worldwide.

“The resulting enhanced connectivity of the port would contribute positively to our future annual throughput volumes”, he said.

As PTP is the main gateway for Iskandar Malaysia shippers, Sidik said the improved global connectivity would also further improve the attractiveness of the corridor as an investment destination.

“Local shippers, especially those Johor-based, now have new opportunities and more options to ship their cargo through the port”, he said. – Bernama

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