The new additions include extended and dedicated storage areas for loaded and empty containers, a runway for rubber tired gantries (RTG), container care facilities, weigh bridges at the gates and an upgraded access road, as it primes the Laguna dry port for the revival of intermodal freight transport in the Philippines. The expansion works, which is Phase 1 development of LGICT, is estimated to cost PHP 587 million and is eyed for completion by yearend. It will add 7.22 hectares of developed dry port facilities to the initial four-hectare container yard already operational. On full development, LGICT will have an area of 21 hectares and will include facilities for reefer containers, truck holding areas, a fuel station, a rail workshop and container freight stations. For its equipment fleet, on order are RTGs, side lifters, prime mover trucks and additional reach stackers. Opened last March, the LGICT is a joint venture of ICTSI, Transnational Diversified Group (TDG) and Nippon Container Terminals (NCT) Co. Ltd. Photo shows the groundbreaking and time capsule lowering ceremonies signaling the start of Phase 1 civil works at the LGICT site inCalamba City, Laguna. From left: Socorro Z. Niro, TDG Chief Finance Officer; Rashid Alexander H. Delgado, Transnational Diversified Corp. President; Atty. Lirene Mora-Suarez, ICTSI Corporate Legal Services Officer; Christian R. Gonzalez, ICTSI Vice President and Head of the Asia Pacific region; Dan C. Florentino, TDG Chief Operating Officer; Carmela N. Rodriguez, LGICT General Manager; and Shuji Harada, NCT Philippines President.
Kalmar to deliver two additional ASCs for DP World Brisbane
The cranes will join a fleet of 14 Kalmar ASCs at Fisherman Islands Terminal, bringing the number of modules servicing container trade to eight and increasing capacity by 14 percent to 720,000 TEU. The new ASCs will be delivered fully erected in 2016 and they are expected to be commissioned in January 2017.
DP World Australia’s Managing Director and CEO, Paul Scurrah, said the investment at the Port of Brisbane is a strong signal of the company’s commitment to Queensland trade.
“Productivity at our Fisherman Islands Terminal has grown from strength to strength,” Mr Scurrah said. “In the past six months we have seen higher waterside productivity and a more consistent operational performance from our ASC and shuttle terminal. We are confident that trend will continue.”
Glenn Wayne, General Manager Operations, DP World Brisbane, commented, “The acquisition of the two new ASCs is expected to further improve our quayside productivity, while enabling a more efficient transfer of containers from our road side operation. It will also result in a 14 percent increase in yard stacking capacity, while providing an additional five truck lanes which will further reduce truck turn times across all shifts.”
Since DP World Australia launched its semi-automated terminal with seven operating modules in May 2014, key performance metrics including truck turnaround time and quay crane productivity have improved significantly. The majority of trucks are processed through the terminal in less than 30 minutes, and quay crane gross moves per hour are now above mode pre-implementation levels.
End-to-end efficiency is achieved in the terminal through a combination of Kalmar automated stacking cranes, shuttle carriers and automated truck handling, all integrated to operate in an optimal manner with Kalmar terminal logistic system and Navis terminal operating system.
Dublin Port achieves high environmental recognition
Santiago Garcia Mila, ESPO Chairman, handed over the PERS certificate to Eamonn O’Reilly, Chief Executive, Dublin Port Company.
“We congratulate Dublin Port for achieving the PERS certification, in particular since it has been a long-time supporter of the EcoPort tools and approach. Dublin Port is a good example to follow as it achieves a PERS certification for the fourth time in a row”, said ESPO’s Chairman Mila.
“We are very pleased to receive this PERS certificate for the fourth time in a row. Receiving this PERS Certification at the ESPO Conference is a great honour for us especially as we will be hosting the ESPO Conference in Dublin next year” said O’Reilly, Chief Executive, Dublin Port Company.
PERS is the only port sector specific environmental management standard. It is the flagship product of the EcoPorts network and is offered as part of the ESPO services to its members through the EcoPorts website. Compliance with the PERS standard is independently assessed by Lloyd’s Register Quality Assurance and the certificate has a validity of two years. ESPO is delighted to observe the increased interest shown to PERS by European port authorities and encourages all ports within its membership to implement the scheme and to get certified.
Picture, left to right: Eamonn O’Reilly, Chief Executive, Dublin Port Company; Antonis Michail, Ecoports coordinator; Isabelle Ryckbost, ESPO Secretary General and Santiago Garcia Mila, ESPO Chairman.
Ships operating with security personnel are best placed to rescue displaced refugees
Commenting amidst mounting concern that the displacement of peoples from the Middle East and North Africa could present a terrorist threat to European states, Ivari Sarapuu, ESC Global Security’s Chief Security Officer, said: “Although merchant ships are bound by the Law of the Sea to rescue those in difficulty, they should exercise caution when taking on refugees, given the overwhelming numbers involved and the political volatility in the countries from which these people have fled.”
Sarapuu, the former head of training for NATO protection teams and the chief of vessel protection detachment on an EU ATALANTA warship operating off the Somali coast, believes that commercial vessels operating with minimal crew may not have the training required to ensure the vessel remains secure.
“Ship safety and security must remain the number one priority. It will be difficult for a small crew onboard a ferry, tanker or bulk carrier to remain operationally effective if it has to provide humanitarian aid to hundreds of refugees. A shipboard security team, however, is able to monitor the boarding of the refugees, carry out any identification checks and ensure that their actions do not impact on ship operations.
“Qualified, properly trained and regularly tested security personnel are best placed to identify the likely number of vessels and people being encountered, contact the relevant authorities, provide medical assistance where required and maintain video and written records of the event, leaving the crew to continue operating the vessel safely.”
Jaanus Rahumägi, President & CEO, ESC Global Security, said: “The deployment of professional security guards on vessels is not limited to operations in known high risk areas. We suggest using security on vessels to avoid further escalation of potentially armed refugees carrying out crimes and acts of terrorism. With this in mind, specially trained security is strongly recommended to identify possible weapons or other prohibited items and, if necessary, to apply measures to maintain the safety of all persons onboard.”
According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 218,000 people, including migrants and refugees, crossed the Mediterranean by irregular routes in 2014 and this trend is expected to continue throughout 2015.
The crisis in Rohingya, Southeast Asia, is on a similar scale, with the UNHCR estimating that a potential 200,000 people could be displaced.