Posted on February 23, 2015 10:37:00 PM
By Alden M. Monzon, Reporter
A PRIORITY bill that will allow foreign vessels to dock in multiple ports across the country was passed in the Senate on the third and final reading on Monday.
Under the bill, considered as a priority by business groups, local producers and entrepreneurs will be able to cut production and transport costs by allowing im porters and exporters to co-load in foreign ships going in or out of the Philippine waters.
Once it becomes law, foreign cargoes will be allowed to go directly to Manila, then proceed to their local destination, instead of the existing procedure where goods are unloaded in Manila, then transshipped to local carriers which will carry these to their local destination.
Several versions of the bill are pending at the House of Representatives Committee on Trade and Industry.
It also states that cargo intended for export may be carried in a foreign vessel through a Philippine port.
“This is our first step in our effort to further unlock the shipping industry, let it grow and thrive, and make it as efficient as possible as we anticipate more trade, more economic activity, and real inclusive growth for the Filipino people,” Senator Paolo Benigno A. Aquino IV said in a released statement after the session.
The proposed bill will amend Section 1009 of the Presidential Decree No. 1464, otherwise known as the Tariff and Customs Code of 1978, which says that cargoes arriving from abroad via a foreign vessel can only be carried by the same vessel through any port of entry to the port of destination in the Philippines.
An exporter from Cagayan de Oro currently needs to pay twice to ship goods to Hong Kong — $1,120 to ship his goods to Manila via a local shipping line and another $144 for the trip from Manila to Hong Kong, Mr. Aquino said.
He compared this to shipping via a 20-foot container unit from Kaoshiung, Taiwan to Cagayan de Oro, which will only costs $360.
The same importer from Cagayan de Oro will also pay import cargo from Taiwan — $159 for the trip from Kaoshiung, Taiwan, to Manila using a foreign vessel, and another $1,120 for the trip from Manila to Cagayan De Oro.
“Entrepreneurs who are exporting goods from Subic, Cebu, Cagayan De Oro and Davao, would be able to co-load in one ship before heading out of the country directly in a more efficient and cost-effective manner instead of having to pass by the Manila ports,” Mr. Aquino said.
The senator also said that by allowing foreign ships to go directly to other domestic ports around the country, container yards in the Port of Manila will be freed up in space, saving time, costs and energy for exporters and importers in sending their raw materials, goods and products in and out of the country.
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