BUTTERWORTH – It’s the dawn of a new day for Penang Port Sdn Bhd’s (PPSB) newly gazetted North Butterworth Container Terminal (NBCT) as a free commercial zone (FCZ) when the terminal received its first trans-shipment today.
They included 223 twenty-foot equivalent (TEUs) from the Evergreen Marine Corporation, which kick-started a new chapter in PPSB being a focal point for shipping and trans-shipment activities in the region.
It also puts PPSB on the world map as NBCT is now able to cater to activities, such as high-tech warehousing, and has logistics facilities.
PPSB chief executive officer Datuk V. Sasedharan said 223 TEUs from Yangon, Myanmar, which is in re-destination, will be transported to Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan ports under the trans-shipment status as the original shipment would take longer.
“In trans-shipment, the cargo will reach the destination faster.
“We are targeting about 50,000 TEUs this year and a revenue of RM10 million from trans-shipments.
“We expect to increase it to 500,000 TEUs annually as there are about eight million TEUs handled by ports in the Bay of Bengal,” he added.
A brief ceremony was held at the NBCT to mark the first trans-shipment after the FCZ status was given to the terminal on February 1.
Penang Port Commission chairman Datuk Tan Teik Cheng launched the event.
Present were state Customs Department director Abdul Halim Ramli, PPSB chairman Datuk Syed Mohamad Syed Murtaza and PPSB chief operations officer Radhi Mohamad.
“We talked to all the major shipping lines in the world and offered incentives to use our port to carry out trans-shipment activities.
“We are eyeing ports in the Bay of Bengal as there is greater potential to tap it as it has more to offer.
“We are also focusing on our existing customers who have good potential for trans-shipment activities as Penang Port is one of the most lucrative opportunities identified by PPSB.
“Penang Port plans to link up feeder operations in the Bay of Bengal with main-line operations based on its 8.1 million TEUs.
“Several top carriers have shown interest in the transhipment of cargo at the NBCT and plans for FCZ,” he said.
Sasedharan said Penang Port is the last to be given FCZ status of all the western coastline ports, after its previous management tried to obtain the status over the last 30 years. – The Vibes, April 29, 2021
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