- June 17, 2015
- News & Events, Press Releases
Harbor Star goes to Indonesia
Harbor Star Shipping Services Inc., a leading provider of harbor assistance, lighterage, salvage and towing services in the Philippines, is investing $10 million to expand its business in Indonesia.
Harbor Star chairman Geronimo Bella Jr. said in an interview at the sidelines of the company’s annual stockholders meeting the company was in talks with an Indonesian firm with existing contract with a coal power plant company for the transport of coal.
Under the plan, Harbor Star will provide additional 10 tugboats to transport coal within Indonesia.
Bella said a meeting was set next week to finalize the agreement. A project finance through Indonesian banks is being considered to partly cover the investment.
If the negotiations pushes through, Indonesia will be second Southeast Asian country that Harbor Star will penetrate, after Malaysia.
Bella said the company was also looking at Vietnam as another expansion area.
In the Philippines, the company added General Santos and Cebu as new markets for its harbor assistance business.
Given the company’s expansion plans, Harbor Star is optimistic about the prospects of the company for 2015 despite the lingering effects of port congestion.
“We look to 2015 and onward with guarded confidence and optimism. The effect of the 2014 port congestion will still be felt as shipping lines calling the Philippines have reduced their scheduled voyages,” Bella said.
“Nevertheless, we see our harbor assistance business to expand as we look to enter other markets such as General Santos and Cebu. We are also upbeat in finally penetrating overseas markets,” he said.
The company posted a net income of P124.7 million in 2014, up 14.7 percent from P108.4 million posted in 2013 as revenues rose 22.8 percent to P1.13 billion from P905.7 million during the period.
Bella said the company was able to achieve strong 2014 results despite a 7-month long congestion in the ports of Manila which resulted in a 25-percent decrease in vessel calls, affecting the company’s core business of docking and undocking vessels.
Bella said the company focused on servicing ports outside traditional commercial ports while it hosted its lighterage, towing and underwater marine works services.
Harbor Star maintains a fleet of 28 classed tug boats, three barges, a cargo vessel, an oil spill response vessel and an anchor handling tug supply vessel. It has established operations in 12 base ports all over the country.