THE International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) yesterday said operations at the Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) have returned to normal levels with the continuous pullout of overstaying cargo at the port.
At present, MICT’s overall terminal utilization is now under 67 percent and reefer utilization at under 65 percent, a significant improvement from the 100 percent yard utilization posted last month.
ICTSI said the cargo pullouts last week do not include numerous containers of unclaimed cargo transferred to other yards and facilitated by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA).
All incoming ships are able to dock as scheduled, with no waiting time, it added.
“Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of our frontline employees and many port stakeholders, the terminal has been able to pull off this feat. Efforts should continue, however, to ensure that we have no repeat of the dangerously low level of pullouts we experienced at the end of March and in early April,” Christian Gonzalez, ICTSI executive vice president, said.
“The statistics have proven that government implemented exemptions for cargo and penalties for overstayers worked and that these, along with the efforts of importers, have avoided the unmanageable consequences we would have had if we did not respond as we did,” he added.
“We must remember that there remains a significant amount of unclaimed cargo from well before March 2020, and we must ensure a free flow of cargo to facilitate the transport of critical food, medical supplies and basic necessities,” Gonzalez also said.
According to Gonzalez, instrumental to the return to normalcy was the collaboration and cooperation of government including the Inter-Agency Task Force, Department of Transportation (DOTr) especially the PPA, Department of Trade and Industry, and Department of Finance including the BOC.
He also cited the immediate response of all other port stakeholders such as the shipping lines, consignees, truckers, brokers and forwarders.
Early this month, the DOTr said it aims to achieve 60 percent yard utilization, the ideal operational level at the Manila port, through the continued compliance of shippers and consignees to pull out overstaying cargoes.
