Wed, Sep 29, 2004 page10

• Keelung places hopes in harbor

  SHIPPING Keelung was once the nation's most important port; now officials hope its new free trade zone will help to give the harbor a boost

  • By Jessie Ho / STAFF REPORTER
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  Once the nation's largest and most important gateway during the early 18th century and the Japanese colonial period, Keelung Harbor is striving to regain its old glory by transforming itself into the nation's first free trade port.

  The effort became more urgent after Kaohsiung Port took over its role in the 1990s.

  

  Freighters load cargo at Keelung Harbor on Monday. The harbor, once Taiwan's most important port, was granted status as the nation's first free trade port in March. Officials of the Keelung Harbor Bureau expect the designation to boost the amount of goods shipped through the special zone.

  PHOTO: JESSIE HO, TAIPEI TIMES

  "We hope to revive the ancient port with incentives provided by the free trade port mechanism," said Lu Chan-yu (盧展猷), director of the port business department in the Keelung Harbor Bureau, while pointing out the areas that are designated to be the free trade zone.

  An ambition to restore Keelung Harbor's prosperity prompted bureau officials to speed up preparatory work after the Statute Governing the Establishment and Management of Free Trade Ports (自由貿易港區設置及管理條例) passed in July last year. The harbor was granted free trade port status in March, and is scheduled to gain permission to operate by tomorrow.

  According to the bureau's plan, about 63 hectares of land will be turned into a free trade zone, encompassing Dock 11 to Dock 33 in the west bank, and Dock 6 to Dock 22 in the east bank.

  Within the zone, companies can undertake a wide range of businesses, including consolidation of cargo, minor assembly, repacking, warehousing, packaging, logistics and other value-added services that are free of customs, commodity tax, business tax, port dues and wine and tobacco tax.

  The bureau estimates that the free trade port will bring in over NT$94 million, create 2,100 jobs and have an annual output value of NT$600 million for companies in the port.

  As soon as the harbor bureau receives permission from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, it will hold public bidding for companies interested in operating the free trade zone, Lu said. United Logistics International Co (聯興國際通運), the largest terminal operator in the harbor, and Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp (陽明海運) are eager to bid on the project, Lu said.

  Michael Tung (董明吉), vice president of United Logistics International, acknowledged that the company is drafting a bid proposal.

  "We believe that the free trade port will bring new life to the old port and the city," Tung said.

  Tung, a native of Keelung who has 30 years' experience in the logistics industry, said the greatest advantage of Keelung Harbor is its geographic location.

  Keelung is at the crux of main shipping routes across the Pacific, as well as to Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia. With metropolitan Taipei and Hsinchu Science Park nearby, companies frequently use the harbor to ship goods, saving both costs and time.

  The harbor's handling volume peaked in 1995, when 2.17 million TEU (twenty feet equivalent unit) containers passed in or out of the port, according to the bureau's statistics. The number declined to 1.67 million TEU containers in 1999 but has slightly rebounded since then.

  For the first eight months of the year, the harbor handled 1.38 million TEU containers, up 8.85 percent from the same period last year. As the economy has significantly recovered, the bureau hopes to reach 2.12 million TEU containers this year, Lu said.

  Tung said if his company wins the bidding, he will target high-tech companies that import bulk and heavy raw materials or semi-finished goods via sea routes. These companies usually add value to the goods in Taiwan and then export them by air.

  Other potential tenants are transshipping, trading, warehousing and processing companies, he said.

  Jean Rong-feng (簡榮芳), secretary-general of International Ocean Freight Forwarders and Logistics Association, Taiwan (台北市海運承攬公會), said the free trade port status will give Keelung Harbor a boost, as his member companies have expressed high interest in the zone.

  Alan Huang (黃仁傑), director of Danzas AEI Ocean Services Taiwan Ltd, said his company is taking a wait-and-see attitude. The company is an arm of express operator DHL Taiwan Corp. The yet-to-be-finished Taipei Port, formerly known as Damshui Port, seems to be better equipped, he said.

  One major defect of Keelung Harbor is its size limitations. As the harbor adjoins Keelung City, there's no room to expand. Additionally, the rock-hard geology also restricts the depth of the port, so it can only receive small and medium-sized ships.

  Taipei Port, which was just granted status as an international port last year, will begin to play a more important role once the first container terminal is completed in 2008.

  The Ministry of Transportation and Communications plans to finish all seven terminals for Taipei Port -- designed to handle 2.8 million TEU containers -- by 2014.
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