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The Philippine Ports Authority said the immediate solution to the long-standing issue on the return of empty containers is for foreign shipping lines to set up more yards
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PPA general manager Jay Santiago said this will immediately address the problem of truckers’ difficulty in returning empty containers, then allow them to finally handle laden import containers, and free up space inside the port
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Santiago said carriers should consider yards in surrounding areas of Metro Manila, such as in Valenzuela, Bulacan, Cavite, and Laguna
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For a more comprehensive and long-term solution, Santiago said the ball is now with the Bureau of Customs with the proposed joint administrative order on port yard utilization and transparency on charges in the handling of cargoes by customs third parties and other logistics providers
The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) is pointing to more empty container yards, to be set up by foreign shipping lines, as the immediate solution to the long-standing issue on the return of empty containers.
PPA General Manager Jay Santiago in an interview on radio station DZRH’s “Dos Por Dos” program said this will immediately address the problem of truckers’ difficulty in returning empty containers, then will allow them to finally handle laden import containers, and free up space inside the port.
Truckers have earlier explained that because they are forced to hold on to the empty containers, they could not immediately return to the empty container yard, and lose the opportunity to do more truck transactions.
Speaking in Filipino, Santiago said the bottom line is that carriers need to invest on new yards. “Pero ang sumatotal po niyan, Ka Tunying, ang talagang solusyon po diyan sa problemang iyan ay ang pagtatayo po ng mga karagdagang empty container yards ng mga foreign shipping lines para ma-accommodate po yung pagbalik ng mga empty containers sa kani-kanila pong pasilidad at hindi po, kumbaga, natatanggihan yung pagsosoli ng ating mga truckers diyan,” he said.
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He acknowledged that empty lots for new yards could be difficult to find near the port area, and recommended that companies scout around the metro such as in Valenzuela, Bulacan, Cavite, and Laguna.
The problem, he noted, is the cost in transporting the empty container to these farther areas and who should shoulder that extra expense. “Push and pull po diyan yung ating mga stakeholders kung sino po ang gagastos doon sa dagdag na gastusin para maibalik po diretso dito sa mga empty container yards at patungo po sa mga pantalan bago po ma-ship out iyan,” he noted.
Santiago noted PPA had also earlier proposed a solution to the issue on empty container return and container deposit, though it was shelved. The proposed Trusted Operator Program–Container Registry and Monitoring System (TOP-CRMS) is an electronic system to monitor and to secure a container insurance policy.
The system met widespread opposition from stakeholders due to various concerns and was indefinitely suspended in 2023 by the PPA Board. The Anti-Red Tape Authority in its regulatory impact assessment also found “no sound legal and empirical basis to establish the need” for the TOP-CRMS.
READ: ARTA puts “final nail in the coffin” of PPA container monitoring policy, say industry groups
For a new long-term solution, Santiago said the ball is now with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) with its proposed joint administrative order (JAO) that will provide guidelines on port yard utilization and transparency on charges in the handling of cargoes by customs third parties and other logistics providers.
READ: JAO on port issues up for secretaries’ signatures—Nepomuceno
Santiago said the proposed measure is now for the signing of involved agencies.
He added that PPA continues to coordinate with BOC on what can be done in the meantime while waiting for the implementation of the JAO.
Some trucking and other stakeholder groups held protests from October 5 to 8, calling for immediate dialogue, concrete solutions, and coordinated action from government agencies, international shipping lines, port operators, and local government units over unresolved operational and regulatory problems that they say are causing delays, raising costs, shrinking trucking capacity, and disrupting cargo movement.
