Maersk Sealand became the port's main customer in 2000 when its parent AP Moller-Maersk took a 30 per cent equity stake in the port. Evergreen Marine Corp followed suit in 2002, also trading PSA Corporation for PTP.

While it was expected that PSA would suffer from the loss of P&O Nedlloyd - one of PSA's largest customers - as cargo volumes would migrate to PTP, surging container cargo demand driven by China more than offset the lost volumes.

Significant volumes also remained with PSA as Maersk honoured the former line's Virtual Terminal Agreement which gives preferential rates for minimum volume guarantees.

'Combining P&O Nedlloyd and Maersk Sealand into Maersk Line, the throughput we will be having in Singapore will be greater than in the past,' AP Moller-Maersk South East Asia chief executive Thomas Orting Jorgensen told BT.

'Our contract with PSA remains confidential but we can confirm that we have signed a new agreement with the port that runs until 2012.'

In Singapore, PSA handled 11.39 million containers in the first half of this year, 4.2 per cent more than a year ago.

Maersk Line also gave a crucial boost to PTP's global connectivity, pushing it to 70 weekly services.

The port's expansion plans are also on track, with two new berths scheduled for completion by the end of August, which will give PTP 10 berths and an annual capacity of eight million TEUs, compared with six million TEUs at present.

PTP also recently purchased eight super post panamax quay cranes, capable of lifting two 40-foot containers at a time, with deliveries this year and next.

'PTP cannot lag behind in terms of facilities, operation and management,' said PTP chief executive officer En Harun Hj Johari. 'To prepare ourselves to capture the cargo from China, we need to strategise ourselves and invest accordingly on things like infrastructure, facilities and quality human capital to enhance our competitiveness,' he said.

He also pointed to the industry trends of consolidation and ever larger container ships of 10,000 TEUs and above as being a benefit to transhipment ports like PTP.

'The increased deployment of larger vessels will lead to increased repositioning and amplified use of the transshipment hub and spoke concept. Consolidation in the industry through mergers, acquisitions and alliances will also result in larger shipping lines, thus being of significant advantage to transshipment ports such as PTP,' he said.

The port is also continuing to develop its free zone which has 30 per cent of its space occupied by Flextronics International, Ciba Vision, JST Manufacturing Co and BMW.

Meanwhile, the integration of Maersk Sealand and P&O Nedlloyd into Maersk Line is 'well under way', according to Mr Jorgensen.

'Integrating two large, global organisations is a complex and demanding task,' Mr Jorgensen said. 'A key priority has been to ensure that customers experience as few disruptions as possible,' he said, adding that most of Maersk Line's customers are already seeing the benefit of the line's expanded global network.

That network now consists of nearly 500 vessels on 78 main services with a capacity of more than 1.3 million TEUs. The line estimates it will make 46,000 port calls in 2006