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The coastal trade in Malaysia is witnessing some
significant structural changes which are also
having positive effects on local ports including
by generating greater volume of trade and
widening shipping connectivity.
The changes and trends are expected to
accentuate over the next few years with strong
implications to development of shipping and
ports in this region, according to the
recently-launched “Ports Review”, a publication
of the Federation of Malaysian Port Operating
Companies.
One significant development is that, aside from
expansion in the volume of trade, coastal
shipping companies, especially liner operators,
are now extending their market outreach by
linking up their domestic shipping services with
calls at regional ports.
Several new ports are now linked directly with
ports in Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah/Sarawak,
the Review said.
Several container liner operators have in recent
years started to introduce new and additional
service strings calling at regional ports such
as Ho Chi Minh, Bangkok, Yangoon, Chittagong,
Chennai as well as Jakarta, Belawan and several
ports in Indonesia.
Among the operators include Swee Joo Bhd (Johan
Shipping), HubLine, PDZ and Habour Line.
According to the FMPOC news magazine, invariably
the widening of the shipping services by the
coastal operators beyond the domestic trade
could spawn a network of feeder connectivity to
local ports as well.
Local ports such Penang, Northport and Westports
at Port Klang, Port of Tanjung Pelepas, Bintulu,
Sepangar Bay (in Sabah) are among the ports
which have recorded increased ship calls from
this source, Ports Review said.
Parallel with the widening of the outreach is of
course the deployment of bigger vessels both to
provide more shipping space as well as to meet
the need for faster and newer ships to cover
longer journeys.
It is to be noted that from ship size of
averaging 110 TEUs 10 years in the Malaysian
domestic trade, the average size of container
ships has increased to 150 TEUs.
Also, instead of covering several ports in a
single service strings, several shipping lines
are resorting to more direct calls between
selected ports to which smaller vessels “feeder”
from low draft and riverine ports.
This approach enables shipping lines to offer
shorter transit times between the selected
ports.
These shipping lines are also fostering “hub”
ports, as evidenced in the recent signing of a
five year agreement by HubLine to use Bintulu
Port as its hub port under agreed terms with
Bintulu Port Sdn Bhd. Similar developments could
feature in the future as ports compete for this
“hub” port status in the coastal and regional
trades as well.
The developments augur well for the development
of Malaysian coastal shipping companies – which
are protected by the Cabotage Policy for trade
between local ports – to leverage their growth
ahead and engaged in trades beyond the domestic
water.
Ports too would be able to play a role in the
development of this burgeoning trade by
providing appropriate facilities and services
aimed at fostering regional trades, including in
conventional cargo handling, the FMPOC news
magazine noted. |
