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Manila International Container Terminal is implementing temporary operational measures starting July 15 for four weeks — or until service levels stabilize — to address disruptions caused by vessel bunching, off-schedule arrivals, and vessel exchanges exceeding agreed move counts
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Carriers that exceed their approved move counts will be required to stay within agreed limits, while those consistently operating below their counts will have their planned exchanges aligned with a rolling 26-week average
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Non-compliant vessels may face penalties, including being turned away at berth
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No induced, rescue, extra-loader, or overlapping vessel calls will be accommodated during the four-week period
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The temporary measures come amid high yard utilization at international termainals
Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) is enforcing stricter controls on shipping lines whose vessels arrive off-schedule or exceed agreed container volumes. The country’s biggest container hub is implementing temporary measures designed to stabilize service levels and ease pressure on operations amid elevated yard utilization.
In a commercial advisory dated July 1, MICT announced it will apply temporary operational measures for the next four weeks starting July 15, or until overall terminal service levels have returned to stable operating conditions.
MICT noted it is implementing these measures “amid the continued challenges of vessel bunching, off-window arrivals, and vessel exchanges exceeding agreed berthing window pro forma move counts.”
Essentially, these measures will control the movement of containers, by capping how many containers a vessel can load and unload during its port call.
For carriers exceeding their approved berthing window pro forma move counts — that is, vessels trying to load or unload more containers than their berthing slot allows — MICT will require them to align their vessel exchanges within the agreed move count.
For carriers consistently operating below their approved pro forma move counts, MICT will recalibrate their planned vessel exchanges against a rolling 26-week average of their actual exchange volumes. This prevents carriers from booking large berthing windows they do not use, blocking capacity that other services could utilize.
Carriers that fail to comply may face a range of operational penalties, including:
- Retain on Board (ROB) of import containers — meaning some containers will not be unloaded and will stay on the ship
- Reduced discharge moves — fewer containers unloaded per call
- Loading restrictions or reduced export loading
- Cut-and-run operations, where the terminal terminates a vessel’s port call early to maintain the berth schedule
- Non-accommodation of the vessel call entirely, where operationally necessary
Additionally, no induced, rescue, extra-loader, or overlapping vessel calls will be accommodated during the four-week period — effectively closing the door on last-minute, unscheduled vessel calls that further strain the terminal’s resources. Carriers are also being asked to maintain a balanced vessel exchange profile, ensuring an appropriate mix of discharge and loading moves for each call.
“This is intended to restore operational balance across all services while providing the terminal with the opportunity to recover to previous service levels. We recognize that they may impact individual service operations and appreciate your cooperation and support in ensuring their successful implementation,” MICT said in the advisory.
Part of a broader push
The MICT measures are the latest in a series of interventions aimed at addressing Manila’s persistent port congestion problem. As early as May, MICT had already urged shipping lines, customers, and consignees to expedite the withdrawal of laden containers as the terminal continued to experience higher-than-normal yard utilization due to longer container dwell times.
In June, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) ordered the immediate adoption of three measures across Manila’s international terminals: the mandatory transfer of overstaying laden containers to off-dock yards, a strict five-day processing window for goods declarations, and the deployment of sweeper vessels for the evacuation and re-exportation of empty containers.
Manila’s international terminals experienced critically high yard utilization — breaching 100% at points — earlier this year due to what industry stakeholders described as “a convergence of seasonal, operational, and logistical factors observed since mid-December of last year,” according to the Association of International Shipping Lines. Conditions improved from March, but utilization climbed again in late April. At Manila South Harbor, however, overall yard utilization has since improved, reaching approximately 60% to 65% in the first days of July.
BOC has also recently issued a draft joint administrative order seeking public input on policies to address high logistics costs, port congestion, and the inefficient return of empty containers — signaling that the push for systemic, long-term solutions is gaining momentum alongside the near-term operational fixes. — Roumina Pablo
READ: Manila’s Cargo Crisis (Part 1): When Sea and Air Feel the Squeeze
Manila’s Cargo Crisis (Part 2): Capacity Crunch at the Airport
