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PPA says more empty container yards, set up by foreign shipping lines, are the quickest fix to port congestion
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Santiago suggests yard sites in Valenzuela, Bulacan, Cavite and Laguna, but who pays the extra trucking cost is unresolved
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A long-term fix now rests with the BOC’s proposed joint administrative order, which is awaiting agency signatures
More empty container yards set up by foreign shipping lines are the immediate solution to port congestion and the long-standing problem of returning empty containers, according to the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA).
PPA General Manager Jay Santiago, in an interview on DZRH’s “Dos Por Dos” program, said more yards would make it easier for truckers to return empty containers. This would let them take on laden import containers sooner and free up space inside the port.
Truckers earlier said they are forced to hold on to empty containers because yards turn them away. This keeps their trucks tied up and costs them the chance to take on more trips.
Ultimately, Santiago said, foreign shipping lines need to build more empty container yards.
“But all in all … the real solution to that problem is for foreign shipping lines to build additional empty container yards to accommodate the return of empty containers to their respective facilities, so that our truckers are not turned away when returning them,” he said in Filipino.
READ: Hapag-Lloyd suspends Manila, Batangas, Subic bookings over congestion
Finding space outside Manila
Santiago acknowledged that vacant lots for new yards are hard to find near the port area. He recommended that companies look at areas around Metro Manila such as Valenzuela, Bulacan, Cavite and Laguna.
The challenge, he noted, is the added cost of moving empty containers to these farther locations, and who should pay for it.
“Our stakeholders are in a push and pull over who will shoulder the extra cost of bringing the containers directly to the empty container yards and then to the ports before they are shipped out,” he said.
Earlier PPA proposal shelved
Santiago noted that PPA had earlier proposed a solution to the empty container return and container deposit issues, but it was shelved.
The proposed Trusted Operator Program–Container Registry and Monitoring System (TOP-CRMS) was an electronic system to monitor containers and secure a container insurance policy. It met widespread opposition from stakeholders and was indefinitely suspended by the PPA Board in 2023. In its regulatory impact assessment, the Anti-Red Tape Authority also found “no sound legal and empirical basis to establish the need” for TOP-CRMS.
READ: ARTA puts “final nail in the coffin” of PPA container monitoring policy, say industry groups
Long-term fix now with BOC
For a long-term solution, Santiago said the ball is now with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and its proposed joint administrative order (JAO). The JAO will set guidelines on port yard use and on transparency in charges for cargo handling by customs third parties and other logistics providers.
He said the proposed measure is now up for signing by the agencies involved. Meanwhile, PPA continues to coordinate with BOC on interim measures until the JAO takes effect.
READ: JAO on port issues up for secretaries’ signatures—Nepomuceno
From October 5 to 8, trucking and other stakeholder groups held protests calling for immediate dialogue, concrete solutions and coordinated action from government agencies, international shipping lines, port operators and local government units. They said unresolved operational and regulatory problems are causing delays, raising costs, shrinking trucking capacity and disrupting cargo movement.
