NEW P3-B PORT RISING IN BATAAN
MANILA, Philippines – The tandem of Filipino-owned Seasia Logistic Philippines Inc. and London-based Nectar Group Ltd. expects to complete the first phase of a P3-billion development port project in Bataan.
Seasia president Rafael Cosme said in an interview with The STAR that phase 1 of the port development project of Seasia Nectar Port Services Inc. (SNPSI) worth P1.2 billion, covering 5.9 hectares would be completed within the year.
Cosme said the port facility could accommodate two supramax vessels about 120 meters long and would be equipped with a 247-meter quay that could handle a capacity of at least three million tons per year.
Phase 1 would have an operational area of 3.2 hectares as well as truck holding area of 2.7 hectares.
SNPSI is 60 percent owned by Seasia Logistics and 40 percent by the Nectar Group.
The planned dry bulk terminal is designed to handle shipment of coal, clinker, silica sand and other cement raw materials, steel, fertilizer and other dry bulk cargo.
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Cosme said SNPSI would be pouring another P600 million for phase 2 that would cover another 1.1 hectares and extending the berth by another 100-meter quay, allowing the facility to handle one supramax or panamax vessels.
Cosme also said that phase 3 is expected to cost around P1.2 billion, covering 4.4 hectares and another 200 meters of quay.
“It will be market driven,” Cosme said referring to the start of the construction of phases 2 and 3.
With the completion of phase 1, he said the company would start handling the clinker as well as coal shipments of Holcim Philippines.
“Right now they are using a handymax vessels carrying between 30,000 and 40,000 metric tons per shipment. We will also handle their coal shipments which comes in by barges,” he said.
For the second phase, Cosme said SNPSI would be looking at steel shipments and even containerized shipments of locators inside the freeport area of Bataan.
Services to be offered by SNPSI include berth management, guaranteed discharge rate as per agreement, proper storage and loading of cargo onto trucks, efficient system of discharging and stacking, truck tires and chassis washing, weighing in and out of trucks, among others.
SNPSI chairman Ramon Atayde said the dry bulk terminal in Mariveles, Bataan would help resolve congestion at the ports of Manila.
Atayde said ports operating in Manila include the Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) of International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI), the South Harbor of Asian Terminals Inc. (ATI), the North Harbor of Manila North Harbour Port Inc., and a private-owned Harbour Center.
He pointed out that Bataan is nearer by sea to Manila compared to the Subic Bay Freeport economic zone.
Deogracias Custodio, chairman of the Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan (AFAB), said the proposed facility would allow the zone to attract new locators.
The planned dry bulk terminal is designed to handle shipment of coal, clinker, silica sand and other cement raw materials, steel, fertilizer and other dry bulk cargo.