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New container port expected to change regional transshipment patterns
The Cai Mep deepwater container ship port is destined to play an important role in regional sea transport. Many shipping firms are considering exploiting the new port to transship cargoes from other countries, especially Cambodia.
Cai Mep goes into operation, Cambodia also benefits
According to Mitsui O.S.K Line (MOL), the new Cai Mep deepwater port near Vung Tau City, some 80 km southeast of Ho Chi Minh City, on June 18 received cargo in transit from Cambodia to the US for the third time.
Currently, containers from Phnom Penh are shipped to Cai Mep port on self-propelled barges. It takes two days to transport goods from Phnom Penh to Cai Mep.
Mitsui is the first shipping firm to handle Cambodian’s exports via Cai Mep to the US. The shipping firm said that using the Cai Mep port shortens the transport time needed by two to ten days (it depends on whether the destination ports are in the US or Canada).
APL and Hyundai are also moving ahead with plans to carry Cambodian exports to the US via the new Cai Mep port. Currently, the carrying of goods from Cambodia to Vietnam is mostly undertaken by Sovereign, a Taiwanese company that built the wharf in Phnom Penh
Cai Mep, the opportunity for South East Asia
The Cai Mep port is designed to serve container ships up to 80,000 deadweight tons. When it is in full operation in late 2010, it is expected to handle up to 1.1 million tons of cargo annually. Experts believe that the deep water port in Vietnam will rapidly change shipping routes in the region. MOL says that it is considering bringing commodities from Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and India to Cai Mep port as a transit port.
However, at this moment, the Cai Mep port’s handling capabilities are limited by incomplete infrastructure. It is capable of receiving only one large container ship a a time. From now to the end of 2009, it is expected that up to seven transpacific shipping firms will bring ships to Cai Mep.
The biggest advantage of transhipping goods in Vietnam that shipping firms can see is the advantageous geographic position. Moreover, the cost of using container ports here is considered as cheaper than Singapore and Hong Kong. According to shipping firms, transhipping in Vietnam shortens the time of shipping a container from Cambodia to the US by one week and saves $200-300 in charges relative to Singapore or Hong Kong.
Vietnam’s direct exports to the US seem also likely to benefit from the new port, as it helps shorten the supply chain and reduce risks. However, Vietnam will only be able to actually get that benefit when Vietnamese companies succeed in designating the logistics service providers, a perogative currently exercised by US importers.
While waiting domestic logistics companies to mature, the port will earn $45-70 in loading and unloading fee per every container of transit goods
VietNamNet, SGTT
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