The National Development Council (NDC) on Monday approved an investment of NT$38.166 billion (US$1.37 billion) over five years to upgrade seven international commercial ports in Taiwan.
The plan — which was proposed by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications — is expected to create 13,000 jobs and stimulate NT$320 billion in investment, NDC Deputy Minister Yu Chien-hwa (游建華) said.
The ministry is to launch 29 projects at the ports of Kaohsiung, Keelung, Hualien, Taichung and Taipei, as well as Tainan’s Anping and Yilan County’s Suao ports, to boost capacity, and turn them into green and smart international harbors, Yu said, citing the plan, which is to run from next year to 2026.
Photo: CNA
THROUGHPUT
Taiwan International Ports Corp (台灣港務) vice president of engineering Wang Chin-jung (王錦榮) said that the company aims to boost the total container throughput of the seven ports to 15.66 million to 18.22 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) by 2026.
It also hopes to increase total cargo throughput at the seven ports from an annual average of 1.59 billion tonnes at present to 1.80 billion tonnes by 2026, Wang said.
The ports would be developed and promoted based on their special characteristics, he said.
KAOHSIUNG EXAMPLE
For example, the Port of Kaohsiung is Taiwan’s largest port and was the 16th-busiest container port in the world last year, so Taiwan International Ports would make it a leading cargo transshipment hub in the Asia-Pacific region, Wang said.
The company hopes to increase the port’s container throughput from 9.62 million TEUs last year to 11.44 million TEUs by 2026, he said.
The Port of Taipei is to become a smart logistics center for automobiles and the Port of Taichung a base for green energy development, while the ports at Suao, Hualien and Anping are to be developed for tourism, Wang said.
Meanwhile, the Maritime Port Bureau plans to inject NT$9.7 billion into 33 projects to refurbish four domestic commercial ports — Budai in Chiayi County, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu — to improve their competitiveness, and boost tourism and economic development near them.
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