'Conditions better at T. Priok'

'Conditions better at T. Priok'

JAKARTA (JP): After its first six weeks, a new service system
at Jakarta's Tanjung Priok port has considerably eased the flow
of cargo at the port, Minister of Transportation Haryanto
Dhanutirto said yesterday.

Haryanto said the new system, enforced under a ministerial
instruction, had cut ships' waiting time at the port, improved
stevedoring productivity and reduced yard occupancy ratio.

Tanjung Priok has been criticized for its mountains of red
tape and poor facilities, both of which have been causing serious
cargo handling delays and lengthening waiting times in the port.

Haryanto said the average waiting time of ships had been
reduced from 24 hours before July 1 to 18 hours during the period
of June 1 through June 15, to 14 hours during the period of June
16 through June 30 and to only nine hours for the July 1-July 12
period.

"A number of liners even have enjoyed zero waiting time," the
minister told journalists after reporting to President Soeharto.

He said container handling activities had improved
significantly, from 15 container boxes per crane/hour before June
1 to 18 boxes per crane/hour, or from 2,400 boxes a day before
June 1 to 2.700 boxes a day in June and 3,000 boxes a day early
this month.

The yard occupancy ratio had dropped from 72 percent before
June 1 to 65 percent in June and 58 percent early this month,
Haryanto said. "My target is 50 percent."

"During the last three weeks, I visited the port almost every
day to monitor the implementation of my crash program... And
sometimes I had to stay at the port until 9 p.m.," Haryanto said,
adding that the new service system will be in use until
September.

The new system basically gives the state-owned PT Pelabuhan
Indonesia II, which manages the port's activities, full authority
over the ship-handling processes that formerly rested with
terminal operators.

Port users had previously criticized terminal operators of
conducting exclusive services for certain shipping lines only.

Haryanto said such improvements at the port had prompted the
ANERA (Asia North America Rate Agreement) group and OSRA
(Overseas Ship Owner Association) to postpone the imposition of
congestion surcharges on Indonesia's importers until Sept. 1 of
this year.

"It's finally been agreed upon to postpone the implementation
of the Jakarta port congestion surcharges to Sept. 1 and to have
a general review on Aug. 24," ANERA and OSRA's letters were
quoted by Haryanto as saying.

ANERA -- a forum consisting of seven shipping lines operating
between North America and Asia with common members in the Intra
Asia forum -- had earlier threatened to impose surcharges of
US$200 per 40-foot container and $100 per 20-foot container bound
for Tanjung Priok beginning July 15.

Further improvement

Haryanto vowed to further improve Tanjung Priok's ship-
handling services so that the imposition of such surcharges would
never happen. "I'll work hard to mend the problem before the Aug.
24 review."

The minister said his efforts had reduced the stacking time of
containers at the ports from 10 days to six days. "I'll try to
make it even shorter."

He noted that to make the stevedoring activities more
efficient, each container crane has been supported by four trans-
trainers and seven head trucks.

He added that the port authority had imported used cranes to
support the existing ones.

To alleviate the rampant red tape at the port, the government
has urged the port authority to install a computerized system to
reduce direct contact between the officials and the port users.

He said the government, in cooperation with private investors,
would start the development of Tanjung Priok's fourth container
terminal next year.

The fourth terminal is expected to have an annual cargo-
handling capacity of 1.5 million to two million twenty-foot
equivalent units (TEU) per annum.

"That will expand Tanjung Priok's handling capacity to four
million or even five million TEUs.

Construction work at the fourth terminal is slated to start in
early 1997.

According to OSRA, the volume of cargo handled at Tanjung
Priok is expected to increase to 1.5 million TEUs this year, up
from 1.3 million TEUs last year. (rid)