ATI's ports ready for peak season, wins Asia Pacific award

July 11, 2017

Asian Terminals Inc.’s (ATI) international container ports in Manila and Batangas are performing at optimum production and utilization levels, ready for the peak season, a senior company official said on Tuesday.

Andrew Hoad, ATI executive vice president, said that quay crane production at Batangas Container Terminal (BCT) stood at 32 gross moves per crane per hour (GMPH) in June while yard utilization remained below 50%, demonstrating its capacity to handle more ships and cargoes.

GMPH is an efficiency measure indicating how fast a quay crane moves containers from ship to shore in an hour.

BCT ended the first half of 2017 handling over 93,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units), marking another mid-year record for the terminal and keeps it on pace of exceeding its 2016 record volume of nearly 160,000 teus.

Since 2010, BCT has grown as a trade facilitator in Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon), serving as government’s effective partner in decongesting Manila roads.

Meanwhile, Manila South Harbor (MSH) has further increased crane production, hitting 30 GMPH, while yard utilization remains at an optimum 70%. For the January to June 2017 period, MSH has already broken its 2016 record by handling just short of 550,000 TEUs.

“Overall, the two terminals are operating at an optimum range of yard capacity and are ready to take more volumes heading into the peak season in line with the growth of the Philippine economy,” Hoad emphasized.

In 2016, MSH achieved a record milestone handling over one million TEUs for the first time which triggered a concession clause for more equipment deployment and port development. In line with this, MSH will take delivery of two more quay cranes during the 1st quarter of 2018, with additional pier length development through 2019.

Its outstanding operational performance last year has led ATI to win the 2016 Best Terminal Award in Asia Pacific from its foreign shareholder partner DP World. ATI outperformed 9 other DP World-affiliated terminals located throughout China, Korea and Southeast Asia.