ASIA

New-found popularity threatens to block Vietnams arteries

19 years ago

In Southeast Asia,the single most exciting development ports-wise has been the rapid opening up of Vietnam, where container exports have been growing at 19% on average for the past decade. In the last 12 months the world and his wife has piled into the former French colony. Most are forming joint ventures, primarily in the Cai Mep-Thi Vai port project located in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, about 80 km southeast of Ho Chi Minh City.

With a depth of 14 m, these ports in Cai Mep will be able to handle ships of up to 80,000 dwt, making them the deepest container ports in Vietnam and they are expected to become the main international gateway ports for South Vietnam when completed in 2010.

VICT, the original dedicated container terminal facility in which NOL invested back in 1998, has also just outlined expansion plans to add 192m in quay length thus maxing out its capacity to 650,000 teu by next year.

Meanwhile, PSA, APM Terminals, SSA, Busan Port Authority, Hanjin Shipping, Japan’s Overseas Development Agency and Hutchison Ports Holdings have all committed to joint venture projects in Ba Ria-Vung Tau while DP World is involved in a project at Hiep Phuoc, 10km south of Ho Chi Minh City.

While Vietnam has been exposed to containerisation longer than most, thanks to the US’ use of boxes during its 12-year war with Hanoi, the southeast Asian nation didn’t embrace containerisation commercially until the 1990s and this helps explain why just six terminals have dedicated container cranes.

“Potential congestion issues are expected to arise in the period 2007- 2010. The current dedicated container handling facilities … are operating at almost full capacity,” a recent APLcommissioned white paper on Vietnam freight transportation warned.