Pelepas invites S'pore ports to tackle competition together
Business Times Singapore Online
By Eddie Toh,
The Port of Tanjung Pelepas which won over Maersk Sealand from Singapore's PSA Corporation last year, has called for cooperation between the two countries' ports amid a surge in transhipment business at the Malaysian port.
" We now move forward by inviting them to ponder on ways and means that Singapore and PTP can cooperate for mutual benefit" Mohd Sidik Shaik Osman, PTP chief executive officer told a delegation of senior Singapore government officials yesterday.
He added: " We can draw on each other's strengths and this will make both our countries stronger to face increasing global challenges and new paradigns facing the port and shipping sector."
The 21-member Singapore delegation, led by Home Affairs permanent secretary Tan Guang Ching, was in Malaysia as part of a training programme.
The PTP statement said Mr Mohd Sidek briefed the delegation on PTP’s vision as an "emerging and soon-to-be leading transhipment hub" in South-east Asia.
And he said ports must increase their value-added services to customers during the current global economic downturn.
“It is the ports that can be the engine of growth in any downturn.” Mr Mohd Sidik said.
He also said PTP needs joint-venture partners and investors to jumpstart the development of its vast tract of land surrounding the port.
This is the first time that PTP called for cooperation between ports of the two countries since Maersk Sealand relocated its entire operations from Singapore to PTP exactly one year ago.
Maersk Sealand, which is the world’s largest shipping company, has so far channeled over half of the pledged two million container boxes to PTP.
The surge of volume has strained PTP’s capacity forcing the Malaysian port to speed up the development of its second phase.
The Malaysian Government has stepped in to help the port expand with a soft loan of RM 1 billion (S$460 million).
Singapore is expected to welcome any cooperation between its ports and PTP.
Last September, Teh Kok Peng, Government of Singapore Investment Corporation president for special investment, even said PSA and PTP could merge when the former is privatized.
“In the future, the biggest competition facing Pelepas and PSA will be not each other but ports in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong,” he said.