PTP To Up Annual Capacity By 25 Per Cent with Capacity Expansion

Johor Bahru: Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP), which completed phase two of its master plan through a recent expansion, is looking to raise its annual handling capacity by 25% to 10.5 million 20ft equivalent units (TEUs).

"Our stated annualised capacity is 10.5 million TEUs but we are now embarking on various initiatives to enable the port to increase its capacity to up to 12.5 million TEUs in the next three to five years," chief executive officer Glen Hilton said.

He said the port had been gearing up its terminal capacity and facility to accommodate the additional volumes projection.

"The latest berth construction (berth 13 and 14) will provide PTP with an additional 720m of quay length which were already in operations in early May 2014," he told Bernama via email.

Hilton said the expansion would not only raise PTP's annual handling capacity but also increase the number of berths to 14 with total quay length of more than 5km.

"We are confident that the 2014 target would be achieved with the gearing up of the terminal capacity and facility to accommodate the anticipated additional volume and drive more new volume into PTP," Hilton said.

PTP's expansion cost RM1.4bil, involving the building of two new berths, three blocks of containers yards, purchase of new quay cranes and as well as electrifying existing rubber-tyred gantries.

Hilton said the port's new berths and new equipment would be able to handle the Maersk Line Triple-E vessels, a new generation container ships with 18,000 TEU capacity.

Only a few ports globally were able to handle these mega container vessels and PTP was one of them, he added.

For this year, he said PTP was targeting a volume growth of about 8.6 million TEUs versus 7.6 million TEUs last year.

PTP, which is the busiest port in Malaysia currently, is also ranked the 19th busiest port in the world.

Among the world's top five shipping lines that use PTP include Maersk, CMA-CGM and Evergreen.

Its free zone area has successfully, over the years, attracted big brand names such as contact lens manufacturer Ciba Vision, electronics component maker Flextronics and manufacturer of sub-sea oil and gas drilling equipment Cameron International.