PORT AND TERMINAL OPERATIONS
UNIT 1: Introduction to the Port
1.1 Difference between Major and Minor Ports, State owned Ports, Ports in India
1.2 Natural Harbors, New Ports to be developed in India
1.3 Major Ports of the World – Largest Port in the world
1.4 Port Officials and their roles – Role of Ports – Port users
1.5 Container Terminals – Privatization of Terminals, Reason for Privatization
1.6 PPP Projects – Major Terminal Operators in India – Terminal Operators of the world
1.7 Privatization: Need of the Hour – Agreement between existing Port Terminal & new operator
1.8 Specialized Terminals: Coal, Liquid bulk, LNG
Unit 2: Terminal Planning
2.1 Import Cycle – Export Cycle – Positions & Places in a Terminal
2.2 Facilities in a Terminal: Yard planning – Vessel ship planning
2.3 Stacking of refrigerated & hazardous containers – Container monitoring
2.4 Types of Ships & Containers
2.5 CFS, ICD & its roles – CFS inside a terminal
2.6 Reasons for congestion of a terminal – Decongesting the terminal
2.7 Window berthing system in a terminal
2.8 Wharfs and Berths – Various Berths in a Port – Berth Restrictions, Draught
2.9 Port Equipment & damages – Extra services – Berth reservation schemes.
Unit 3: Cargo Operations, Navigation, and Port Tariffs
3.1 Major Port Trust Act – Port as custodian of cargo – Transit sheds – Cargo receivers
3.2 Types of Cargo – Goods handled in port
3.3 Port Tariff – Tariff Authorities of Major Ports – Revision of Rates
3.4 Pilots & their duties – Tugs & usage – Night navigation – Light dues
3.5 Port Trustees – Meaning of Berth Restrictions
UNIT 1: Introduction to the Port
A port is a harbor or an area that can accommodate a large number of boats and vessels (transferring people or cargo) while also allowing for continuous or periodic shipments. Ports in India are classified as Major and Minor Ports according to the jurisdiction of the Central and State government as defined under the Indian Ports Act, 1908 i.e. Major Ports are owned and managed by the Central Government and Minor ports are owned and managed by the State Governments. PPPs in the ports sector in India have been witnessed in the operations and management of ports, and construction of deep water ports, container terminals, shipping yards and bulk ports. Certain policy measures have generated private sector interest in the Ports Sector. These include: The Government of India issued guidelines for private sector participation in major ports in 1996. The guidelines provided for private sector investment in leasing out existing port assets, construction of additional assets, leasing of equipment for port handling from the private sector, pilotage and captive facilities for port based industries.
In 1997, further guidelines were issued enabling major ports to set up joint ventures with foreign ports, minor ports and private companies. State government initiatives for minor ports were also based on these guidelines. The Government of India introduced corporatization of ports. They took the decision that all new ports would be setup as companies under the Indian Companies Act and the existing port trusts would be gradually corporatized and set up as companies. Under Section 80 IA, investors are offered a 100% rebate on income tax for 10 consecutive years, out of the first 20 years of a project.
Major Ports
Major Ports are under the Union list of the Indian Constitution and are administered under the Indian Ports Act 1908 and the Major Port Trust Act, 1963. Each major port is governed by a Board of Trustees appointed by the Government of India. The Trusts operate on the basis of policy directives and orders from the Government of India. Their functions include planning, management and operations of ports. The tariffs for major ports are fixed by the Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP).
Minor Ports
Minor operations are managed at the State level by the department in charge of ports or the State Maritime Board, if created, as is the case in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. The functions of the State maritime boards are similar to those of port trusts, and also include the authority to set tariffs. They also focus on attracting private investment by awarding concession contracts, providing incentives, exclusivity rights and assuring land acquisition.
Difference between Major Ports and Minor Ports
State Owned Ports
Governance principles are most important in the case of ports. Ports are critical infrastructure for an economy, contributing to the realization of trade and movement. At the same time, port management, operations, and development are capital intensive, consume (public) scarce land, generate externalities (noise, emissions), and involve many decision-makers and stakeholders such as the port authority, terminal operators, rail operators, trucking companies, logistics providers, and port-cities. Port governance concerns the public as well as the private sectors but tends to apply differently depending on whether public or private interests are at stake. Its features are imposed by governments or adopted voluntarily by entities, groups, or associations. Its principles apply to relationships between businesses, public/private agencies and their stakeholders, organizations, and those who establish them to undertake activities on their behalf.Port governance concerns the public as well as the private sectors but tends to apply differently depending on whether public or private interests are at stake. Its features are imposed by governments or adopted voluntarily by entities, groups, or associations. Its principles apply to relationships between businesses, public/private agencies and their stakeholders, organizations, and those who establish them to undertake activities on their behalf.
The trends in (global) trade and in transport are vital for port governance, as they define the environment within which ports operate. Since the 1980s, port governance has become central to the agendas of many governments. A changing economic environment produced by the globalization of production and distribution, changing cargo transportation forms, and technological breakthroughs ended a long period of stable, state-controlled (public) port governance models in most countries. As economic circumstances changed, so too were changes, albeit slowly, made to port governance structures. Many governments entered a port reform period to adapt to a new context, changing applicable governance structures.
There are 12 major ports and 200 non-major ports (minor ports) in the country. While the Major Ports are under the administrative control of the Ministry of Shipping, the non-major ports are under the jurisdiction of respective State Maritime Boards/ State Government. All the 12 Major ports are functional. Out of the 200 non-major ports, around 65 ports handle cargo and the others are “Port Limits” where no cargo is handled and these are used by fishing vessels and by small ferries to carry passengers across the creeks etc. Chennai Port Trust, Cochin Port Trust, Deendayal Port Trust, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, Paradip Port Trust, Kolkata Port Trust, Mormugao Port Trust, Mumbai Port Trust, New Mangalore Port Trust, Visakhapatnam Port Trust, V.O.Chidambarnar Port trust.
There are five main port management models based on the respective responsibility of the public and private sectors. They include the public service port, the tool port, the landlord port, the corporatized port, and the private service port. Each of these models concerns ports with different characteristics concerning the ownership of infrastructure, equipment, terminal operation, and who provides port services such as pilotage and towage. While service and tool ports primarily promote public interests, landlord ports attempt to balance public and private interests. At the other end of the spectrum, private service ports are maximizing the interests of their shareholders.
Public service ports. The port authority of public service ports performs the whole range of port-related services and owns the entire infrastructure. They are commonly a branch of a government ministry, and most of their employees are civil servants. Some ancillary services can be left to private companies.
Because of the inefficiencies they are related to, the number of public service ports has declined.
Tool ports. Similar to a public service port, the tool port differs only by the private handling of its cargo operations, albeit the port authority still owns the terminal equipment. In several cases, a tool port is a transitional form between a public service port and a landlord port.
Landlord ports. Represents the most common management model where infrastructure, particularly terminals, are leased to private operating companies with the port authority retaining ownership of the land. The most common form of lease is a concession agreement where a private company is granted a long
term lease in exchange for rent that is commonly a function of the size of the facility as well as the investment required to build, renovate or expand the terminal. The private operator is also responsible for providing terminal equipment to maintain operating standards.
Corporatized ports. Concerns ports have almost entirely been privatized, except that ownership remains public and often assumed as a majority shareholder. The port authority essentially behaves like a private enterprise. This management model is unique since it is the only one where ownership and control are separated, which lessens “public good” pressures landlord port authority faces and “shareholder value” pressures private ports face.
∙ Private Service ports. The outcome of complete privatization of the port facility mandates that the facilities retain their maritime role. The port authority is entirely privatized, with almost all the port functions under private control, with the public sector retaining a standard regulatory oversight. Still, public entities can be shareholders and thus gear the port towards strategies that are deemed to be of public interest.
Major Sea Ports in India
India has 12 major seaports (11 Government-owned and one private) and 200 notified minor and intermediate ports that handle a huge volume of traffic. Ports play a very central role in the development of a nation. Cost, capacity, and ease of transportation via ports are most effective compared to other modes available. About 95 percent by volume and 70 percent by value of India’s total international trade are carried on through maritime transportation. All ports in India are situated in the 9 coastal states of India namely Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat, West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. India’s extended coastline forms one of the major portions of land that juts out into a water body. Thirteen major ports in the country handle a lot of volume of container and cargo traffic. On the west coast, there are the ports of Mumbai, Kandla, Mangalore, JNPT, Mormugao, and Cochin. The ones on the east coast are the ports at Chennai, Tuticorin, Visakhapatnam, Paradip, Kolkata, and Ennore. The last one, Ennore, is a registered public company with the government owning a 68% stake. Mumbai is the largest natural port in India. The Indian government has a federal structure, and according to its constitution, maritime transport is to be administered by both the Central and the State governments. While the central government’s shipping ministry administers the major ports, the minor and intermediate ports are administered by the relevant departments or ministries in the nine coastal states – Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
List of Major Ports in India
The list of important major ports in India is given below:
1. Chennai Port
∙ Chennai Port, formerly known as Madras Port, is the second-largest container port of India, behind Mumbai’s Nhava Sheva (JNPT). The port is the largest one in the Bay of Bengal.
∙ It is an artificial and all-weather port with wet docks.
∙ It is due to the existence of the port that the city of Chennai eventually became known as the Gateway of South India.
2. Kochi (Cochin) Port
∙ Cochin Port or Kochi Port is a major port on the Arabian Sea – Laccadive Sea – Indian Ocean sea-route in the city of Kochi and is one of the largest ports in India. It is also the first transshipment terminal in India.
∙ The port lies on two islands in the Lake of Kochi: Willingdon Island and Vallarpadam, towards the Fort Kochi river mouth opening onto the Laccadive Sea.
∙ Kochi Port in Kerela is the example of a Tidal port .
∙ The port is generally called as the natural gateway for the industrial and agricultural produce markets of South-West India.
∙ Exports of spices, tea, and coffee. ∙ It is one of the centers for shipbuilding.
3. Ennore Port
∙ India’s First corporatized port and 12th major port of India. ∙ It is located on the Coromandel Coast about 24 km north of the Chennai Port.
∙ Trades: Iron Ore, Coal, petroleum products and chemicals. 4. Kolkata Port
∙ Port of Kolkata or Kolkata Port, officially known as Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Trust, is the only riverine major port of India, located in the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, around 203 kilometres from the sea.
∙ It is the oldest operating port in India and was constructed by the British East India Company.
∙ Kolkata is a freshwater port with no variation in salinity.
∙ Known as Diamond Harbour
∙ Known for twin dock systems viz. Kolkata Dock on the eastern bank and Haldia Dock on the western bank of river Hooghly
∙ Trade: Jute, tea, Coal, Steel
5. Kandla Port
∙ Deendayal Port Trust, located in the town of Kandla, is a seaport and town in Kutch district of Gujarat state in Western India, near the city of Gandhidham. ∙ Located on the Gulf of Kutch, it is one of major ports on the west coast. ∙ Known as Tidal Port
∙ It was constructed after partition when Karachi Port was transferred to Pakistan.
∙ It also relieves the congestion of Mumbai Port
∙ Largest port by volume of cargo handled.
∙ It has been acknowledged as a Trade Free Zone.
6. Mangalore Port
∙ It is deep water, all weathered port.
∙ Deals with the iron ore exports
∙ It is the only major port of the coastal state of Karnataka.
7. Mormugao Port
∙ Situated on the estuaries of the river Juari
∙ It is a natural harbour
∙ It was awarded the status of a major port in 1963.
∙ It is a leading iron ore exporting port in India.
∙ Largest Natural Port and harbor in India
∙ Earlier, this port location was used by the navies of Shivaji. ∙ This port has 3 enclosed wet docks:
∙ Prince’s Dock
∙ Victoria Dock
∙ Indira Dock
∙ The busiest Port in India
∙ Jawahar Dweep is an island in the harbor, for Crude and petroleum products handling.
9. Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT)
∙ Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) also known as Nhava Sheva, Navi Mumbai.
∙ Largest Artificial Port and also the largest container port of India. ∙ The name Nhava Sheva is given because of the names of two villages that existed in that area.
∙ It is located on the eastern shore of Mumbai harbor off Elephanta Island and can be accessed via Thane Creek.
∙ This port is the terminal point of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor of Indian Railways.
∙ Trade: Textiles, sporting goods, carpets, pharmaceuticals, chemicals etc. 10. Paradip Port
∙ First Major Port commissioned after Independence.
∙ Located at the confluence of Mahanadi river and Bay of Bengal. ∙ Deals with the export of iron and aluminum and Iron ore is exported to Japan in huge quantity.
11. Tuticorin Port
∙ This port has been renamed as V.O.Chidambaranar Port.
∙ It is an artificial port located in the Gulf of Mannar.
∙ It is famous for pearl fishery in the Bay of Bengal and thus also known as the pearl city.
∙ Trade: coal, salt, petroleum products, and fertilizers.
12. Visakhapatnam Port
∙ This port is a natural harbor and also is the 2nd largest port by volume of cargo handled.
∙ Port is located midway between the Chennai Port and Kolkata Port. ∙ The deepest port of India deals with the export of iron ore to Japan. Amenities for building and fixing of ships are available. Trade: Iron Ore, Coal, Alumina and oil.
Port Development in India
Reducing logistics cost
∙ Defragmented logistics: India was ranked 44th in the World Bank Logistics Index released in 2018, well behind the US at 14 and China at 26. ∙ Cost-effective: By 2022, India hopes to reduce logistics costs from 14% of GDP to less than ten% by employing coastal shipping and inland waterways, which are 60 to 80% less expensive.
Blue Economy
∙ The term "blue economy" refers to all economic activity involving oceans, seas, and coastal areas, and it stems from a need for integrated conservation and sustainability in the maritime domain's administration.
o India's blue economy, which relies on transportation to support 95% of the country's commerce, contributes about 4% of the country's GDP. o India is also one of the world's top five producers of fish and farmed fish.
Security
∙ Ensure the security of strategic installations:
o Port development will result in the development of India's coasts, which are home to a number of strategic installations such as naval bases, nuclear power plants, and satellite and missile launching ranges.
Curtailing transnational organized crime at sea:
India is vulnerable to narcotic drug trafficking because it is between the world's two main opium-producing regions, the Golden Crescent (Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan) to the west and the Golden Triangle (Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos) to the east.
o Such illegal practices would be curtailed by port expansion and proper management of port resources, ensuring the safety of communication sea lanes (SLOC).
Keeping an eye on maritime traffic
∙ With 11,000 to 12,000 ships passing through at any given time, the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) is also the biggest maritime trade route.
∙ Monitoring and regulating the movement of these vessels is difficult but necessary for the country's success.
International relations
∙ Countering the influence of China: China has aggressively exacerbated India's pre-existing Sri Lanka-linked trans-shipment problem through its Belt and Road Initiative. China holds a 99-year lease on Sri Lanka's Hambantota port. As a result, port expansion and local trans-shipment facilities are critical strategic requirements for India.
∙ Regional integration: South Asia is one of the least integrated regions in the world, and India's eastern seaboard can help recreate an integrated hub and spoke model for regional connectivity in the Bay of Bengal.
Vadhavan Port
Vadhavan Port is a proposed new port that is going to be the country’s 13th major port. Situated near the town of Dhanu, in the Palghar district of Maharashtra, the state will have its 3rd port and the country’s first mega port. The project is to be executed jointly by Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and Maharashtra Maritime Board. The port is an ambitious part of the Sagarmala Program which focuses on enhancing and promoting the Indian ports as a fundamental contributor to the nation’s GDP.
∙ This will be the 13th major port in India.
∙ With the development of this port, India will become one of the countries in the top-10 container ports in the world.
∙ A special purpose vehicle (SPV) will be formed with Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) as the lead partner, with equity participation equal to or more than 50% to implement the project.
∙ The port will be developed on the landlord model.
Vadhavan port has been planned by the JNPT as an ‘All Weather, All Cargo’ satellite port to enhance capabilities in handling deep draft ships and larger vessels.
A harbour is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. Sometimes, these harbours can be natural, and some of these which are of great interest to travellers.
A natural harbour is a landform where a section of a body of water is protected and deep enough to allow anchorage and many such harbours are rias. Natural harbours have long been of great strategic naval and economic importance, and many great cities of the world are based near a natural harbour. Having a protected harbour also reduces and eliminates the need for breakwaters as it will result in calmer waves inside the harbour.
There are many candidates for the prize of being the biggest natural harbour and a scarcity of information setting out the size of the various contenders. Even where measurements are available it is risky making comparisons because of the irregularities and curves of each coastline. Then there is the problem that not all the area may be suitable for anchorages without continuous dredging, or they may qualify as being the deepest, busiest or having the greatest area. How do you compare them? For this reason I have written about a few of the largest anchorages, without giving them the title “biggest”, 2nd biggest etc.This is thought by many to be the deepest and largest natural harbour in the world being over 11 miles long (17.7 km) and covering an area of 21 square miles (54 sq. km). The harbour contains several islands and is home to over 580 species of fish. The seabed is irregular and complex with some very deep holes up to 45m deep and shoals where the water depth can be less than 3m. Not only is it a beautiful waterway and a natural playground for sailing, water sports, swimming, diving and walking, but it is surrounded by hundreds of kilometres of shoreline, with national parks and historic sites, including the iconic opera house and Sydney harbour bridge, not to mention Australia’s most famous city itself.
Natural Harbours in India
The erstwhile Bombay Port Trust, which is now known by the names Mumbai Port Trust and Mumbai Harbour, is the largest natural port in India. Spread across an area of 400 square kilometres, the Mumbai Port is the country's largest deep water harbour and is situated along the western coast of India. One of the oldest ports in India, the Mumbai Port was once used by the Maratha Army alongside the Portuguese and British navies, though the ownership resided with the Portuguese Army. In 1652, the East India Council's Surat Council proposed to purchase the port in its entirety solely for the British Navy to operate. It was only nine years later, in 1661, that the port was transferred to the British owing to a nuptial bond between Britain's Charles II and Portugal's Infant Catherine. Apart from the Mumbai Port, India's second biggest natural port is the Cochin Port. It is regarded as India's first transhipment terminal in India and is one of the busiest seaports in the country.
List of Natural Ports in India
Since India has a coastline measuring a mammoth 7,516.6 km, it is quite natural for India to have numerous major and minor ports. While the government has constructed many artificial ports recently, there are a few natural ports with natural harbours. Here's a list of natural ports in India -
Major Ports of the World
Note: ranking is based off of 2019 statistics
Port of Shanghai, China
Situated in the middle of the eastern coastline of the Chinese mainland, the Port of Shanghai is the intersection of the T-shaped water transport network comprising the Yangtze River, known as the golden waterway, and coastal transport channels. It enjoys access to the southern and northern part of China’s coastal area, oceans across the world, as well as the Yangtze River basin, inland rivers of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui provinces, and Taihu Lake basin. Served by well-connected road and railway networks, and fully-developed cargo collection and distribution systems, the Port of Shanghai occupies an important geographic location with superior natural conditions and a robust hinterland economy. Shanghai International Port (Group) Co., Ltd. (SIPG), operator of public terminals in the Port of Shanghai, is a large-scale specialized conglomerate established in January 2003 through the restructuring of the Shanghai Port Authority. It became a shareholding company in June 2005, and was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange on October 26, 2006, becoming the first of its kind to go public in China. SIPG is currently the biggest listed company in port operation in the Chinese mainland, and one of the biggest in the whole world.
The main businesses of SIPG include port handling operation, integrated logistics service, port- related service and port investment business. An industrial chain of port logistics encompassing stevedoring, warehousing and storage, shipping, land transportation and agent service has been put in place. SIPG has in Shanghai 12 branches, 3 internal organizations, 31 second-tier subsidiaries (wholly-owned and holding), and 13 companies with equity investment. The container throughput of the Port of Shanghai (home port of SIPG) stood at 43.303 million TEUs in 2019, ranking No. 1 in the world for 10 consecutive years. As of December 31, 2019, the Company had 142.177 billion yuan in total assets, 9.062 billion yuan in net profit attributable to the parent, and 133.712 billion yuan in market capitalization in the A-shares market. The social contribution value per share of the Company is 0.9342 yuan this year.
PSA Singapore
Flagship Terminal - PSA Singapore is one of the flagship terminals of PSA International, a global port group with port projects spanning across Asia, Europe and the Americas.
In Singapore, PSA operates a total of 53 berths with a designed capacity of 50 million TEUs yearly at its container terminals in Tanjong Pagar, Keppel, Brani and Pasir Panjang.
In 2020, PSA Singapore handled 36.6 million TEUs of containers. PSA is:
World's Busiest Transhipment Hub – accounting for almost one-seventh of the world's total container transhipment throughput and more than 4% of global container throughput.
One of the World's Largest Refrigerated Container (Reefer) Ports – more
than 12,000 reefer points
Excellent Connectivity – connected to 600 ports, with daily sailings to every major port in the world.
Accolades
As a port operator of choice, PSA received the “Ports and Terminals Award” at the Seatrade Maritime Awards Asia in 2018. This is the second time PSA Singapore has won in this individual terminal category.
Strong Partnerships With Unions
PSA employees are represented by the Singapore Port Workers Union (SPWU) and the Port Officers' Union (POU). The management maintains a close relationship with both unions through constant dialogue and cooperation. This improves productivity and efficiency of port personnel, thus promoting business growth.
Port of Ningbo-Zhousha, China
The Port of Ningbo-Zhoushan is operating steadily, despite facing the temporary closure of expressway exits and service areas. China is currently facing its worse spike in COVID-19 since the pandemic began, this has led to all Eastern provinces upgrading their epidemic prevention and control measures. As of 13 April, the country’s National Health Commission reported 1,500 locally transmitted confirmed cases in Chinese mainland. One of the largest measures saw the Ningbo Epidemic Prevention and Control Office announce the temporary closure of 15 expressway exits in Ningbo, this will no doubt have a substantial impact on trucking movements. Several carriers have already reported major disruptions in available trucking capacities due to the lockdown in Shanghai. Even though operations remain active at the Port of Shanghai, last
week, Ocean Network Express (ONE) notified customers that availability is very limited at the moment and the clearance of import cargos has been impacted as a result. The city of Ningbo has also seen a recent increase in COVID-19 cases, sparking congestion concerns at its major port. Officials say that the Ningbo Municipal Government will make every effort to ensure the stable operation of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port. Terminal operations at China’s second-largest port were previously suspended in August last year following a positive COVID-19 case. As many shipping lines are currently diverting their cargo to Ningbo to avoid delays in Shanghai, if terminals were to close again, supply chains could face severe bottlenecks.
Role of Port
Ports are points of convergence between the land and maritime domains of passengers and freight circulation. While the maritime domain can involve substantial geographic coverage related to global trade, the land domain is related to the region and locality of ports. The term port comes from the Latin portus, which means gate or gateway. Historically, ports emerged as safe harbors for fishing, and those with convenient locations became trade hubs, many of which were free access and designed to protect trade. As such, they became the nexus of urbanization, with several becoming the first port cities playing an important role in the economic welfare of their regions. Today, many of the most important cities in the world owe their origin to their port location. The port is a multidimensional entity anchored within geography by its site and situation and depends on its operations, governance structure, and the supply chains it is embedded in.
Due to the operational characteristics of maritime transportation, port location is constrained to a limited array of sites, mostly defined by geography. Since ports are bound by the need to serve ships, access to navigable waterways has been historically the most important site consideration. Before the industrial revolution, ships were the most efficient means of transporting goods across all modes. Ports handle the largest amounts of freight, more than any other type of terminals combined. For handling freight, port infrastructures jointly have to accommodate transshipment activities both on ships and inland and thus facilitate convergence between land transport and maritime systems. In many parts of the world, ports are the points of convergence from which inland transport systems, particularly rail, were laid. Most ports, especially those that are ancient, owe their initial emergence to their site as the great majority of harbors are taking advantage of a natural coastline or a natural site along a river. Four major elements define a port site:
Maritime access, which refers to the physical capacity of the site to accommodate ship operations. It includes the tidal range, which is the difference between the high and low tide, as normal ship operations cannot handle variations of more than 3 meters. Channel and berth depths are also very important to accommodate modern cargo ships. A standard Panamax ship of 65,000 deadweight tons requires a draft of more than 12 meters (40 feet). However, about 70% of world ports have depths of less than 10 meters and are unable to accommodate ships of more than 200 meters in length. Many ports are also impacted by sedimentation, particularly ports in river deltas. This requires continuous dredging, which adds to the costs of port operations. Some river ports may be impacted by periods of flooding and drought, while other ports may be impeded or closed during winter because of ice conditions. While inland port sites (such as at the end of a bay or along a river) generally have the advantage of being closer to the final market, they imply longer deviations from maritime shipping routes.
Maritime interface. Indicates the amount of space that is available to support maritime operations, namely the amount of shoreline that has good maritime access. This attribute is critical since ports are linear entities. Even if a port site has excellent maritime access, namely deepwater waterways, there may not be enough land available to guarantee its future development and expansion. Containerization has expanded the land consumption requirements of many ports. It is therefore not surprising to see that contemporary port expansion projects involve significant capital investments to create artificial port facilities providing more room for this interface.
Infrastructures and equipment. The port site must have infrastructures such as piers, basins, stacking or storage areas, warehouses, and equipment such as cranes, all of which involve high levels of capital investment. In turn, these infrastructures consume land which must be available to ensure port expansion. Keeping up with the investment requirements of modern port operations has become a challenge, particularly considering containerization, which requires substantial amounts of terminal space to operate. Modern container terminals rely on a unique array of infrastructure, including portainers, stacking yards serviced by gantry cranes, and the vehicles used to move containers around the terminal, such as straddle carriers. Container ports have also developed infrastructure to handle refrigerated containers (reefers) with separated stacking areas. Many terminals are also becoming automated, particularly for stacking areas that can be serviced by automated cranes and vehicles.
Land access. Access from the port to industrial complexes and markets ensure its growth and importance. This requires efficient inland distribution systems, such as fluvial barges, rail unit trains, and roads handling intense heavy truck traffic. The land access to ports located in densely populated areas is facing increasing congestion. For instance, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have invested massively to develop the Alameda rail corridor to promote inland access and reduce truck congestion. A similar trend has taken place in Europe where ports such as Rotterdam and Antwerp have been involved in the setting on an inland barge and rail shuttle services.
Port Officials and Their Roles
Ports usually have a governing body referred to as the port authority, port management, or port administration. Port authority is used widely to indicate any of these three terms. The term port authority has been defined in various ways. In 1977, a commission of the European Union (EU) defined a port authority as a State, Municipal, public, or private body, which is largely responsible for the tasks of construction, administration and sometimes the operation of port facilities and, in certain circumstances, for security. This definition is sufficiently broad to accommodate the various port management models existing within the EU and elsewhere. Ports authorities may be established at all levels of government: national, regional, provincial, or local. The most common form is a local port authority, an authority administering only one port area. However, national port authorities still exist in various countries such as Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, and Aruba. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Handbook for Port Planners in Developing Countries lists the statutory powers of a national port authority as follows (on the assumption that operational decisions will be taken locally):
∙ Investment: Power to approve proposals for port investments in amounts above a certain figure. The criterion for approval would be that the proposal was broadly in accordance with a national plan, which the authority would maintain.
∙ Financial policy: Power to set common financial objectives for ports (for example, required return on investment defined on a common basis), with a common policy on what infrastructure will be funded centrally versus locally, and advising the government on loan applications.
∙ Tariff policy: Power to regulate rates and charges as required to protect the public interest.
∙ Labor policy: Power to set common recruitment standards, a common wage structure, and common qualifications for promotion; and the power to approve common labor union procedures.
∙ Licensing: When appropriate, power to establish principles for licensing of port employees or agents.
∙ Information and research: Power to collect, collate, analyze, and disseminate statistical information on port activity for general use, and to sponsor research into port matters as required.
∙ Legal: Power to act as legal advisor to local port authorities. Increasingly, central governments implement seaport policies through the allocation of resources rather than through the exercise of wide-ranging regulatory powers. While central governments should pursue macroeconomic objectives through an active seaport policy, port authority objectives should be more narrowly focused on port finances and operations. It is a widely accepted opinion among port specialists that a port authority should have as a principal objective the full recovery of all port-related costs, including capital costs, plus an adequate return on capital. The full recovery of costs will help a port authority to:∙ Maintain internal cost discipline.
∙ Attract outside investment and establish secure long-term cash flows. ∙ Stimulate innovation in the various functional areas to guarantee a long term balance between costs and revenues, especially when faced with innovations by terminal operators, port users, rival ports, and hinterland operators.
∙ Generate internal cash flows needed to replace and expand port infrastructure and superstructure.
∙ Compete according to the rules of the market system, without excessive distortions of competition.
∙ Put limits on cross-subsidization, which may be rational from a marketing point of view (market penetration, traffic attraction), but which can undermine financial performance.
∙ Avoid dissipation of the port authoritis asset base to satisfy objectives of third parties (for example, port users demanding the use of land in the port area without regard to the lands most economic use or port and city administrations using port authority assets to pursue general city goals).
Full cost recovery should be viewed as a minimum port authority objective; once this objective has been achieved, however, the port authority can pursue other-than-financial objectives considered desirable by the government or by itself.
Port Users
1. Steamer Agent
“Ship” means a sea-going vessel and includes a sailing vessel. (Section 65(96) of Finance Act, 1994) “Shipping line” means any person who owns or charters a ship and includes an enterprise which operates or manages the business of shipping. (Section 65(97) of Finance Act, 1994)
“Steamer agent” means any person who undertakes, either directly or indirectly,- (i) to perform any service in connection with the ship’s husbandry or dispatch including the rendering of administrative work related thereto; or (ii) to book, advertise or canvass for cargo for or on behalf of a shipping line; or (iii) to provide container feeder services for or on behalf of a shipping line. (Section 65(100) of Finance Act, 1994)
"Taxable service" means any service provided or to be provided to a shipping line, by a steamer agent in relation to a ship’s husbandry or dispatch or any administrative work related thereto as well as the booking, advertising or canvassing of cargo, including container feeder services. (Section 65(105)(i) of Finance Act, 1994)
2. Liner Agent
The liner agency is a multi-tasking organisation, frequently part of the shipping company itself, although it may be an independent contracted to the line, to find it cargo and to “facilitate” the business. Once located in the ports served by their clients, containerisation and “through-transport logistics” have extended their influence inland and liner agencies will have offices in cargo catchment areas often miles from the sea. International trade is complex and the liner agent will be an expert in international trade procedures, able to help shippers with all the customs and other regulations that have to be fulfilled at both ends of the chain if the goods are not to be delayed. This means they are experts at documentation, these days being complex electronic procedures that will identify the ownership of the goods, their precise description and weight, accurate details of their destination to ensure that all legal obligations are fulfilled. With security a major issue, the liner agent has to redouble its checks on the nature of the cargo, the bona fides of the shipper and the cargo details. New requirements for the verification of weights are an additional responsibility. All this information has to be despatched to the receiving country well before the goods are loaded aboard the ship. Highly sophisticated systems of IT and communications are essential if the agent is to function in today’s complex world of international trade. Responsibility-The liner agent is also responsible for Collection of payments for the carriage of goods To be in a position to monitor the progress of the goods as they travel Providing assurance to the shipper and consignee If the ships, trains and trucks can be considered the physical mechanism of international trade, it is the liner agency which makes their work possible.
"Custom House Agent" means a person licensed, temporarily or otherwise, under the regulations made under sub-section (2) of Section 146 of the Customs Act, 1962 (52 of 1962), [Section 65(35)]. The services rendered by the custom house agent are not merely limited to the clearing of the import and export consignment. The CHA also renders the service of loading/unloading of import or export goods from/at the premises of the exporter/importer, the packing, weighment, measurement of the export goods, the transportation of the export goods to the customs station or the import goods from the custom station to the importers premises, carrying out of various statutory and other formalities such as payment of expenses on account of octroi, destuffing /pelletisation terminal
handling, fumigation, drawback/DEEC processing, survey /amendment fees, dock fees, repairing and examination charges, landing and container charges, statutory labour charges, testing fees, drug control formalities, sorting /marking/stamping/sealing on behalf of the exporter/ importer. The custom house agent incur various other expenses such as crane/fork lift charges, taxi charges, Photostat and fax charges, bank collection charges, courier service charges, and miscellaneous other expenses on account of the importer /exporter. For all the above charges, the CHA is ordinarily reimbursed by the importer/ exporter for whom the above services are rendered. Apart from the above charges, the CHA also charges the client for his services under the head /nomenclature of “agency and attendance charges “ or similar kind of heads which is purported to be his service charge in respect of the services rendered in relation to the import/export goods. There are various Custom House Agent Associations which are currently running down their exertion in India. Indian Agri Trade portal provides an extensive list of almost all CHA’s around various locations of India. One can get their contact details by searching CHA’s name or by state.
4. Stevedoring Agent
Stevedoring includes loading and unloading and stowage of cargo in any form on board the vessels in Ports; Shore Handling includes arranging and receiving the cargo to/from the hook point, Inter modal transport from wharf to stackyard and vice-versa and also receiving and delivering of cargo from/to wagons/trucks. The policy shall cover the following activities:- (i) Stevedoring activities undertaken by the port and/or licensed Stevedore in a Major Port (ii) Shore handling activities undertaken by the port and/or licensed Shore Handling Agents or by agents under any other name. The Stevedoring and Shore handling may cover the activities on board and on shore respectively. Stevedoring and Shore Handling of vessels in Major Ports may be carried out by a single agency, as far as possible.
Container Terminals
Container terminals, along with container ports as a whole, are a crucial part of the supply chain network. They play a vital role in a country’s growth and development, and contribute to economic, political and trade relations around the world. In recent years, the importance of ports and terminals has come into focus, with private ownership steadily on the rise. A container terminal’s main function is to allow for the transfer of shipping containers and cargo between ships and other modes of transport, such as trucks and trains. Terminals also act as a checkpoint where ships are inspected, loaded and unloaded. It may have heard the terms ‘container terminal’ and ‘container port’ used interchangeably. However, terminals and ports are not the same.
A container port is a station used for commercial and trade activities such as the loading and unloading of cargo. Ports are usually located within harbors, and are used for commercial purposes. Besides the offloading of goods, ports are also utilized to offload passengers, as well as for ship maintenance.
A terminal, on the other hand, is a designated area within a port. In a single port, you’ll find many different container terminals, each dedicated to handling specific types of goods and materials. For example, you’ll get separate terminals for gas, oil, building materials and vehicles. Activities at terminals include the temporary storage of containers, maintenance and repair, and sometimes consolidation and deconsolidation of cargo.
Role of container terminals in the shipping process
The main role of a terminal is to connect maritime transport (i.e. ships) to other modes of transport such as trucks, trains and barges. Terminals act as a gateway between one country and another. They enable cargo to be shipped by end-consumers, and act as an important distribution node. From this node, goods can be moved via rail, road and canals to their final destination.
So what are the different kinds of container terminals? It refers to terminals located at sea ports as marine terminals. When transloading is between rail and road, the terminal is referred to as an inland container terminal. These are situated in or nearby major cities, and are well-connected to maritime container terminals by rail. Hinterland terminals are those situated outside of cities. These also connect to maritime terminals, and are vital to the supply chain as a whole. Consider the many landlocked countries in Europe, for example, and their inability to trade goods with non-neighboring countries without this interconnectivity.
Privatization of Terminal
Terminals and terminal operators maintain a complex portfolio that is usually acquired through concessions and land leases. Forms of terminal funding and the financialization of terminal operations are also a fundamental part of terminal development. The analysis of terminal design and equipment looks at containers, bulk and breakbulk, and cruise port terminals. Attention then turns to dock labor and the ongoing automation of port terminals, particularly container terminals. The concluding chapter provides insights on port terminal construction.
Private involvement in port terminal operations
As late as the 1980s, public ownership and operation were the dominant models. While the forms of port governance differed greatly, from the municipally-owned ports in Northern Europe and the United States to the state-owned ports in France, Italy, and much of the developing world, public ownership was dominant, and publicly managed port operations were prevalent. The institutional entry barriers for port terminal operations were remarkably high and limited to specific services. This contrasted with the shipping industry, where private ownership was almost universal. Containerization particularly underlined how operationally deficient public port authorities adapted to growing time and performance requirements imposed on intermodal transport chains. The changes, slow at first, came from two directions:
∙ First, there was the belief that the transport industry as a whole should be divested to the private sector to promote competition. Ports were among the many sectors targeted by economic liberalization policies.
∙ Second, there was a policy recommendation from the World Bank that developing countries would do well to free their highly controlled port industry by issuing concessions to organizations able to modernize their port industries and better manage operations. To facilitate required changes, the World Bank created a Port Reform Tool Kit.
These developments helped create what has become a global snowball of port government reforms, commonly known as port devolution, as the public sector relinquished its role in a function it had formerly assumed. It made governments more open to considering reforming port governance and offering better conditions to ensure privatization. The growing demands for public and private investment in ports, precipitated by the growth in world trade, and the limited abilities of governments to meet these needs because of competing investment priorities, were key factors. Thus, while few were willing to go as far as the UK in the total privatization of ports, many countries were willing to consider awarding concessions as an intermediate form of privatization, leading to various forms of public-private partnerships.
There are several forms for port terminal privatization (not to be confused with port privatization), ranging from the outright sale of a terminal facility to a service contract where a private operator performs specific operational tasks. In contrast, the port authority retains ownership of the facility and equipment.
Typology of port holdings
Privatization has stimulated an almost global trend towards awarding port operational concessions, especially for container terminals. The reasons why container terminals were particularly prone to concessioning were related to the fast growth of international trade requiring massive and rapid capital investments. If the opportunities to award operational concessions can be seen as an increase in demand, growth has also been greatly affected by an increase in the number of companies seeking concessions, with many becoming large port holdings.
Port holding. An entity, commonly private that owns or leases port terminals in a variety of locations. It is also known as a port terminal operator.
The rise of and diversity in global terminal operators is having a structural impact on the port industry. As terminal operators move towards better integration of terminals in supply chains and shipping lines acquire container terminal assets worldwide, leading terminal operating companies are developing diverging strategies towards controlling larger parts of the supply chain.
Transnational terminal holding companies are grouped into three categories: ∙ Independent stevedores. Port terminal operators that expanded into new markets to replicate their expertise in terminal operations and to diversify their revenue geographically. PSA International with headquarters in Singapore is the largest global terminal operator coming from a stevedore background, followed by Hutchison Ports with headquarters in Hong Kong. Stevedores account for about 50% of the hectares controlled by terminal operators worldwide.
∙ Maritime shipping companies. Invested in port terminal facilities to help support their core maritime shipping business. In many cases, hybrid structures are formed with separate business units or sister companies active in liner shipping or terminal operations. The terminal facilities can be operated on a single-user dedicated base or alternatively also be open to third-party shipping lines. APM Terminals, a Maersk Line sister company, is the largest global terminal operator from a maritime shipping background. Shipping lines account for about 31% of the hectares controlled by terminal operators worldwide.
∙ Financial holdings. Include various financial interests ranging from investment banks and retirement funds to sovereign wealth funds attracted by the port terminal sector as an asset class, and with revenue generation potential. The majority have an indirect management approach, acquiring an asset stake, and leaving the existing operator to take care of the operations. Others will directly manage the terminal assets through a parent company. DP World, a branch of the Dubai World sovereign wealth fund, is the largest global terminal operator coming from a financial background. The main reason why financial holding companies became interested in having port terminal assets in their portfolio is that they were perceived to have a high-value proposition. Holdings account for about 19% of the hectares controlled by terminal operators worldwide.
The setting up of specialized terminal operating companies is not a recent phenomenon. Many ports in Europe and the United States had already been awarded to local cargo handling companies through concessions and lease agreements. Because they were relatively small and locally based with only a few exceptions, they did not participate in the global growth of concession awards opportunities. The exceptions were Stevedore Services of America (SSA) already active in several US West Coast Ports, which obtained concessions to operate facilities in Panama and several other smaller ports in Central America; Eurogate, a joint company formed by terminal handling companies from Bremen and Hamburg and Contship Italia, that obtained concessions in Italy and Morocco.
Container Terminals of the World’s Major Terminal Operators
The footprint of global terminal operators is substantial, with the average terminal size around 45 hectares. However, the figure is biased by a small number of very large terminal facilities, as the most common size is 30 hectares. Port holdings are mainly the outcome of horizontal integration through expansion and mergers, leading to a high level of concentration of the global containerized throughput.
Four major port holdings have substantial global assets of about 45 dedicated port terminals each; APM Terminals (controlled by the Danish maritime shipper Maersk; 47 terminals), Dubai Ports World (DPW; 48 terminals), Hutchison Port Holdings (Hong Kong; 52 terminals), and the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA; 42 terminals). Jointly, they controlled through various equity stakes 189 dedicated maritime container terminals in 2019. Their assets are geographically diversified, with Pacific Asia being the main focus of HPH and PSA, South Asia and the Middle East having DPW well represented, and APM having a portfolio with a strong North American emphasis. They are particularly focused along the world’s main commercial gateways, such as the Pearl River Delta (Hong Kong) and the Rhine / Scheldt Delta (Rotterdam and Antwerp).
Several other port holdings exist, owned by specialized private companies (such as SSA for North America or Eurogate for Europe), by ocean carriers (MSC and Maersk have notable assets), or by financial holdings (Ports America owned by AIG), but their focus is mostly regional.
Beyond the three main categories, other types of companies are also involved in container terminals operations:
∙ Freight transport companies. They are involved in a wide range of freight services such as shipping agents, freight forwarders, road and rail transport companies, and third-party logistics service providers. Examples include Bollore, Arkas (Turkey), Wilson (Brazil), Kuwait Gulf Link, Rennies (South Africa), Korea Express, Nippon Express, Severstahltrans (Russia), and Kontena Nasional (Malaysia).
∙ Construction companies. Primarily large engineering firms that have become involved in container terminal concessions through Private Finance Initiatives or attempts to secure terminal construction contracts. Examples include Acciona (Spain), Gammon (India), Tribasa (Mexico), Tucuman (Brazil), Samsung Corp, and Hyundai Development.
∙ Equipment manufacturers. Small specialist companies that have moved into concessions from their original base in equipment servicing. It is worth noting that none of the major manufacturers of container terminal equipment (quay cranes, RTGs) have been involved in bids for terminal
concessions. Being involved in terminal operations could be perceived as an unfair competitive practice since they would be providing equipment to competing operators. Examples include Portek (Singapore), ABG Heavy Industries (India), and Mi-Jack (USA).
∙ Property developers. These are companies based mainly in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, and have diversified from commercial/residential developments into the provision of concessioned infrastructure. Examples include New World, Fairyoung, Henderson (HK), Metro Pacific Investment Corp, and Brisas del Pacifico (Colombia).
∙ Industrial conglomerates. These are either diversified holding companies or large manufacturers (such as steel or cars) regarded by their governments as national champions with the management ability to develop strategic assets. An important sub-set of this group comprises wealthy or well
connected individuals or families who have become involved because of their links to governments. For example, the Motta and Heibron families in Manzanillo (Panama), the Suharto family in Indonesia or Dato Ahmad Sebi at Westports in Port Klang. Other examples of industrial conglomerates include CITIC (China), Syanco (Saudi Arabia), FIAT, Mitsui, Tusdeer, CSN (Brazil), Razon Group (Philippines), Evyap Group (Turkey), and John Keells Holdings (Sri Lanka).
Several of the companies operating container terminals are multi-faceted, often belonging to larger corporate entities covering a wide range of economic activities. Their categorization depends on how far back one goes in tracing the chain of ownership. The farther back the beneficial ownership of a concession is traced, the more complex and fragmented the ownership structure becomes. APMT, for example, whilst trading as an independent terminal operator, has close links to Maersk Line. Similarly, until its sale to institutional investors, Dradagos, the Spanish port and logistics services company, formed part of the ACS Group. ACS’s activities include construction, energy supply, environmental engineering, industrial services, and concessions in other modes of transport. In addition, some corporate structures are deliberately opaque to minimize commercial risks, taxation, or exposure to publicity.
Global terminal operators
Like many multinational corporations, global terminal operators are market seekers that expand their business opportunities through an entry into new markets. A terminal can grow organically, but this is a rather slow process. A much faster growth rate can be achieved through the acquisition of terminal facilities in new markets. From the 1990s, a few companies were able to become major global terminal operators controlling a multinational portfolio of terminal assets. They mostly originate from Asia, with four large companies dominating, three coming from a stevedore background and one from a shipping line:
∙ Hong Kong-based firm, Hutchison Ports (HPH), part of a major conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa.
∙ PSA International (PSA), the government-owned operator of the port of Singapore. Note that the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) was formed in 1964. In 1997, PSA corporatized and was renamed as PSA Corporation Limited. The company kept the name PSA but it is no longer an acronym. In 2003, PSA International Private Limited became the main holding company for the PSA Group.
∙ DP World (DPW), which is mainly part of a sovereign wealth fund created by the government of Dubai to invest the wealth derived from oil trade. ∙ APM Terminals (APM), as a parent company of the world’s largest shipping line; Maersk.
The setting up of global terminal operators took place in three main waves: The first wave included companies like HPH, P&O Ports, and SSA, who expanded their operations on a geographical scale, thereby benefiting from the port privatization schemes in many regions across the world. HPH, which originated as a terminal operator in Hong Kong, first purchased Felixstowe, the largest UK container port. It developed a portfolio of more than 50 terminals worldwide, including in Rotterdam and Shanghai.
As soon as the strategies of the pioneers proved to be successful, the second wave of companies started seeking expansion internationally, such as PSA, CSX World Terminals, and Eurogate. PSA has been active in securing concessions in China and Europe, including Antwerp and Genoa. Like HPH, PSA takes its origin from globally-oriented ports offering limited local terminal expansion opportunities. Local operators were thus encouraged to manage the constrained assets efficiently and to look abroad for expansion opportunities.
The third wave of terminal operators emerged when major container carriers entered the terminal industry in an effort to support their core business. This also included financial holdings such as DPW that have grown through
acquisitions, such as P&O Ports and CSX World Terminals, and by securing concessions in new markets. Shipping lines have also participated in terminal concessions but to a lesser extent. The most important is the in-house terminal operating company of Maersk; APM Terminals. Besides, Evergreen, COSCO (via COSCO Shipping Ports), MSC (via its majority shareholding in TIL – Terminal Investment Limited), and CMA-CGM (via its majority shareholding in Terminal Link) hold port terminal leases. Between the dedicated terminal operating companies and the shipping lines, a global pattern of concessions is evident.
A concentration of ownership among four major port holdings is taking place. While mergers and acquisitions are usually successfully completed, there are cases where they have triggered a regulatory response. For instance, in 2006 DPW acquired the terminal assets of P&O (Peninsular & Oriental Ports), further consolidating its global holdings. However, DPW was constrained to rescind the American assets of this transaction (terminals in Baltimore, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and Philadelphia) to the holding AIG (Ports America) due to political controversy; a Middle Eastern holding operating major American port terminals was perceived negatively in the post 9-11 context. Despite being global, large terminal operators have a strong regional orientation, which indicates their transnational level. Global container terminal operators show varying degrees of involvement in the main cargo handling markets around the world. Complex and geographically diversified portfolios were established in virtually every freight market of the world. The container terminal has become a fundamental node in global freight distribution, with the managerial and operational expertise offered by global holdings an important element in its performance in terms of capacity and reliability.
Since terminal operators have various stakes depending on the concerned terminal, equity-based throughput is commonly used to measure the respective amount of containerized traffic they handle. For instance, two terminal operators may have respective stakes in a terminal of 75% and 25%. If that terminal handles 100,000 TEU per year, then 75,000 TEU will be attributed to one terminal operator and 25,000 TEU to the other. By using such a measure, Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) is the world’s largest terminal operator, even if Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH), Dubai Ports World (DPW), and A.P. Moller Group (APM) have respectively more terminals in their portfolio. Actually, PSA owns a 20% stake in HPH, which from an equity-based throughput perspective conveys traffic handled by another terminal operator. The five largest terminal operators are highly internationalized, with assets in several countries and regions of the world. However, the sixth largest, Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG), is almost exclusively locally-focused around the Shanghai area, where it handles substantial volumes.
Major Dry Bulk Terminals
The term major bulk refers to commodities that are transported in very large quantities using bulk carriers. Three major components impact bulk terminal design:
∙ Supply characteristics. Resources carried by bulk are extracted according to geographic (minerals and fossil fuels) and climatic conditions (agricultural goods and wood products). Some, such as coal, iron ore, and petroleum, have a high level of concentration, while others, such as agricultural goods, are collected over extensive areas.
∙ Demand characteristics. Each bulk market has a demand-pull related to intermediary processing and manufacturing activities. The location of these facilities, usually adjacent to port sites, considers the demand for the resources over an extensive market and a material index (ratio of inputs over outputs). The demand for bulk commodities is usually managed by large commodity traders and brokers able to consolidate purchases and distribution in large quantities.
∙ Potential for economies of scale. The economic rationale in using the largest ship size possible considering the geographical distribution of the supply and demand is fundamental in the bulk market. This potential is limited by the characteristics of the waterways at the port of origin, in transit (e.g. Panama, Suez), and at the port of destination. The outcome is a wide range of bulk ship classes trying to reconcile supply, demand, and economies of scale.
Bulk carrier classes can be dimensioned to meet the maximum nautical access of specific waterways (seaways, canals, or ports), such as: ∙ Malaccamax. Largest vessel that can pass through the Straits of Malacca (20m draft and 300,000 DWT).
∙ Suezmax. Largest vessel that can pass through the Suez Canal (24m and 240,000 DWT).
∙ Seawaymax. Largest vessel that can pass through the canal locks of the St Lawrence Seaway (max LOA: 226m, max draft: 7.92m, 28,500 DWT). This allows for access to the Great Lakes system deep inside North America.
∙ Dunkirkmax. Largest vessel that can enter the eastern harbor lock in the port of Dunkirk, France (max LOA: 289m, max beam: 45m, 175,000 DWT). Dunkirk is a major bulk port, particularly for petroleum products.
∙ Newcastlemax. Largest vessel that can enter the port of Newcastle in Australia (max beam: 47m, 185,000 DWT). The port is among the world’s largest exporter of coal.
Several classes of bulk carriers exist:
∙ Valemax ships. Very large ore carriers (VLOC) with a unit capacity of 380,000 to 400,000 DWT and about 360 meters in length overall (LOA). The ships are owned or chartered by the mining company Vale (Brazil) and deployed on the iron ore trade route between Brazil and Europe, and Asia. In recent years, Chinese shipping companies also started to order Valemax-type vessels. In 2020, there were already 68 Valemax ships on the market.
∙ Capesize. Vessels have a capacity of between 90,000 and 200,000 DWT. A common Capesize vessel size is between 130,000 and 170,000 DWT. ∙ Panamax. A class of bulk carriers having a capacity of 65,000 to 89,999 DWT and meeting the maximum ship dimensions to pass through the old Panama Canal locks.
∙ Supramax or handymax. Bulk carriers of 40,000 to 64,999 DWT. ∙ Handysize. Smaller bulk carriers of 15,000 to 39,999 DWT. ∙ Mini Bulk Carrier. Ships of 3,000 to 14,999 DWT employed in coastal trade and to reach ports having a lower draft.
Economies of scale in the oil tanker sector are the most extensive: ∙ Very large and ultra-large crude carriers (VLCC/ULCC) of more than 200,000 dwt used on some main trade lanes between the Persian Gulf and Europe, North America and Asia, and between Africa and China. ∙ Suezmax vessels with a capacity of between 100,000 and 160,000 dwt typically found on routes to and from West Africa and in the Mediterranean. ∙ Aframax vessels of 70,000 to 100,000 dwt.
∙ Panamax vessels of 40,000 to 70,000 dwt.
LNG carriers can be grouped into different sizes:
∙ Small carriers of between 25,000 to 50,000 m3are used for short-range trades, especially in the Mediterranean.
∙ Vessels between 120,000 to 165,000 m3. It was not until 2006 when a 150,000m3 vessel entered the market. In 2008, vessels of up to 165,000 m3 were delivered for the first time.
∙ Large ‘Q-Flex’ (210,000 to 217,000 m3) and ‘Q-Max’ (260,000 to 270,000 m3) vessels initially designed to service LNG projects in Qatar (owned by Qatar Gas). In 2010, the first vessels in the 170,000 to 180,000 m3range were delivered, narrowing the gap between the more traditional vessels and the Qatari designs.
Major dry bulk commodities include iron ore, coal, and grains. They are not homogeneous as there are several grades of coal used for making steel (coking coal) and energy generation (steam coal). Each represents a different market, implying a segmentation of the bulk trades. Further, there is an important directionality to bulk trade, implying that export bulk terminals are designed rather differently from import bulk terminals:
UNIT II Terminal Planning
Export terminals for coals and iron ore combine stacker reclaimer systems and ship loaders to connect the yard to the bulk carriers. A good example of a major export terminal for dry bulk is Port Hedland in Australia, the world’s largest coal export port. Export terminals facilitate outgoing cargo flows and are strongly synchronized with the inland transport system (mostly rail-based) that connects the mining areas to the terminal. Export terminals try to limit stocks but sometimes have to keep a large (unsold) stock to support commodity trade pricing. In most cases, export terminals handle a limited number of material types due to their location in relation to mining areas or due to their ownership, as many export terminals are owned by traders or mining companies. The location of many export terminals is a compromise between the hinterland and maritime accessibility.
Import terminals for coal and iron ore use unloaders equipped with large grabs to discharge the commodities. There are several types of quay cranes and grabs available. The choice of the crane type depends on the operational needs of the terminal operator in terms of ship sizes to be served and minimum cargo handling productivity in tons per hour. Conveyor systems transport the discharged commodities along the quay and onto the yard. As import terminals usually handle multiple types and grades of major bulks, stockpiles of bulk material are spread across the yard. The terminal surfaces of import terminals are quite large to avoid cross-contamination between stockpiles and comply with necessary certification requirements. Stacker reclaimers are used to
transport the bulk products from the yard to the loading stations for seagoing vessels, inland barges, and railcars. A good example of a major import terminal for dry bulk is EMO in Rotterdam, one of the largest dry bulk terminals in Europe. Import terminals for handling major bulks rely heavily on rail and barge (where available) for hinterland transportation. They have to match services to both the waterside and the landside modalities. The most advanced bulk terminals are equipped with automated railcar loading/unloading systems. Terminal planning is quite challenging as vessels usually arrive in a stochastic manner, and the consignee selects landside services and inland modalities.
Coal and iron ore terminals might offer additional services such as washing, screening to separate the bulk material into different grades, blending silos, and compacting to prevent spontaneous combustion. Terminals limit environmental effects by investing in technology to save energy and reduce noise and dust emissions.
Dust control is a key concern at dry bulk terminals. Whenever a transfer of coal or iron ore occurs, there is a potential to break the lumps, resulting in dust, which can be spread by crosswinds. Once the coal or iron ore is stockpiled, dust can still be a problem. Even if it arrives wet, wind across the stockpile can evaporate the moisture and dust will be lifted. Any vehicles driving over crushed lumps will also raise dust. Several measures are taken to reduce dust emission, such as:
Dust covers on grabs and conveyors.
∙ Fogging systems that release small droplets of water into the air, forcing dust to precipitate.
∙ Sprinkler systems spray water on stockpiles to keep them damped down. This includes an adapted drainage system and on occasion a water recycling station.
∙ Optimized stockpile design such as avoiding edges that can dry quicker than a rounded surface.
∙ Add a protective layer over the stockpile such as a skin formed by a water additive.
∙ In case of loading operations in the vessel holds, loading chutes with heavy-duty dust skirts can be used in order to prevent dust cloud formation arising from the product falling onto the peak of the product pile in the hold.
The capacity of a dry bulk terminal to transload coal or iron ore is determined by many factors, such as the quay length, the yard dimensions, the quay and yard equipment, the stockpile patterns and heights, the storage time distribution of the bulk material, the number of types and/or grades handled, the terminal operating hours (waterside and landside), the arrival patterns, types and sizes of ships and land transport modes. The use of an existing terminal can be further optimized by improving berthing/unberthing procedures, optimizing vessel traffic rules, synchronizing vessel and landside operations, reducing downtime (caused by hatch changes, shift changes, or breakdowns), and installing provisions that allow all-weather operations. In some cases, dry bulk is not handled at terminals, but using offshore handling facilities.
Grain terminals are designed to handle and store wheat, soy, and other grains and oilseeds. There are many models of both discontinuous systems (such as those using grabs) and continuous ship unloaders (CSU), including pneumatic chain, screw, or twin-belt machines. Grain elevators stockpile or store grains using bucket elevators or pneumatic conveyors that scoop up grain from a lower level and deposit it in a silo or other storage facility. Large grain terminals can have dozens of large silos located next to each other. Many grain terminals offer additional services such as cargo sieving in order to calibrate the grain, and fumigation. Many factors influence the performance of unloading systems, such as ship type and size, type of product, the number of product impurities, product density, adverse weather conditions, and down-times.
Equipment on a coal/iron ore terminal
Minor Dry Bulk Terminals
Minor bulks include cargoes such as fertilizers, bulky agricultural products, cement, sand, petroleum coke, and metal scrap. While major bulks are often loaded in large bulk carriers (such as Capesize and Panamax vessels), minor bulks are usually transported by sea in smaller and more versatile vessels such as handymax ships and coasters. The term minor bulk is derived from the potential economies of scale that can be realized due to market size and demand patterns that are more dispersed than for major bulk trades. Just like for major bulks, minor bulks are placed or poured into cargo holds. The terminal superstructure includes:
Cranes and conveyors. Portal quay cranes, jib cranes, mobile cranes, floating cranes, and loader/unloader systems are deployed to load and discharge minor bulks, combined with conveyor and elevator systems where required. The cranes are equipped with specialized grabs, mostly of the clamshell type. The grabs can be operated by ropes (single-rope, two-rope, or four-rope clamshell buckets), electro-hydraulically or diesel hydraulically.
∙ Yard and warehouse vehicles. The cargo handling operations are supported by different types of yard and warehouse vehicles such as bobcats, tractors, trailers, forklifts, and front-end loading shovels (fitted with a pusher).
∙ Other equipment at the yard and the covered storage facilities can include weighbridges, hoppers (where the product is loaded into trailers or trucks), blending silos, and bagging plant facilities.
∙ Minor bulk storage facilities can be in the open air or covered in warehouses and are typically sectioned off into separate bays to enable various products or grades to be stored.
Minor bulk terminals face a wide range of possible operational risks such as cross-contamination of cargo types, water ingress, and fire/ignition/explosion hazards. The handling of bulk ships can be rather dangerous, with specific rules and regulations related to cargo movement and immersion.
Liquid Bulk Terminals
Liquid bulk terminals are equipped to handle cargoes in liquid and gaseous forms, such as crude oil, oil products, LNG, and LPG. These products are shipped by oil tankers, chemical tankers, parcel tankers, and gas carriers. The oil tanker fleet consists of various ship sizes and has been particularly prone to economies of scale considering the global demand for petroleum, one of the most extensively traded commodities. A common size is the Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) of around 200,000 dwt. LNG carriers can be grouped into different sizes depending on the trade route concerned and service a market that has seen rapid growth. Chemical and parcel tankers are designed to carry an assortment of liquids, such as chemicals, or different grades of a liquid, like petroleum, at one time. They usually have a capacity in the range of 25,000 to 80,000 dwt, although smaller units are used for coastal trade.
The loading and unloading of tankers needs special equipment such as loading hoses or loading arms. These loading arms include safety accessories and are often geared with remotely operated quick couplers. Loading arms consist of a piping assembly with moveable pipes. The flexibility is achieved by swiveling joints. Because of the high weight of the steel piping, the moveable pipes are counterweight balanced. The loading arms can have one or two liquid lines and, if needed, can be equipped with a vapor line. The loading arms can be installed on jetties or regular quay walls.
The capture and recovery of hydrocarbon vapor or volatile organic compounds (VOC) to reduce emissions is vital in modern oil and gas terminal handling and storage. The requirements for the vapor recovery systems depend on the type of product handled and stored. Vapor from the cargo tanks passes through a vapor head to a recovery unit. Sulfur components in the vapor are removed before entering the vapor recovery system.
The yard of a liquid bulk terminal usually contains a mix of tank storage facilities and other technical installations such as pump stations. Many liquid bulk terminals are directly connected by pipeline to chemical or petrochemical production sites.
Breakbulk Terminals
Breakbulk is general cargo, loaded into a ship or transport mode as individual or bundled pieces, not stowed into a container, or not transported in ship-sized liquid or dry bulk loads. Conventional general cargo or break bulk cargo encompasses a myriad of different commodities:
Project cargo, including power generation equipment such as generators, turbines, wind turbines, equipment for the oil and gas industry, cables on reels, gas tanks, modules, petrochemical plants, mining equipment, building, construction equipment, brewery tanks, silos, and heavy machinery.
∙ Iron and steel products such as coils, plates, steel bars, slabs, plates, teel wire, pipes, and tubes.
∙ Forest products such as lumber and paper products.
∙ Parcels and bags such as malt, fertilizer, sugar, and rice.
∙ Reefer vessel trades, including fruit and meat.
∙ Break-bulk shipments of smaller lots such as large bags, skidded and palletized cargoes.
A more detailed discussion on the breakbulk markets is provided in Chapter 8.2. The wide range of breakbulk cargoes implies there are also many types of terminals and handling equipment available. Many breakbulk terminals are highly specialized to handle one specific type of breakbulk cargo and cannot be readily converted to other uses. Breakbulk cargo is handled by cranes on the quay, floating cranes, or the ship’s own cargo gear (deck cranes, derricks). On the docks, various types of dockside cranes, level-luffing cranes, and mobile cranes are used for moving and lifting packages. All the vertical cargo movements are conducted by the lifting gear (lift-on/lift-off equipment). Attached to such lifting gear is a shackle that links the crane or derrick with the cargo-handling equipment being used. For most lifts, a hook is used. There are numerous types of tools or loose gear that can be attached to the shipboard or shore-based lifting gear:
∙ Sling or strop, which is probably the most common form of loose gear. Such equipment, generally made of rope, is ideal for hoisting strong packages, such as wooden cases or bagged cargo, which is not likely to sag or be damaged when raised.
∙ Snotters or canvas slings are suitable for bagged cargo.
∙ Chain slings are used for heavy slender cargoes, such as timber or steel rails.
∙ Can or barrel hooks are suitable for hoisting barrels or drums. ∙ Cargo nets are suitable for mail bags and similar cargoes that are not liable to be crushed when hoisted.
∙ Heavy lifting beams are suitable for heavy and long articles such as locomotives, boilers, or railway passenger coaches.
∙ Cargo trays and pallets, the latter being of wooden or steel construction, are ideal for moderate dimension cargoes, which can be conveniently stacked, such as cartons, bags, or small wooden crates or cases.
Forklift trucks are frequently used on break bulk terminals. This type of equipment can be mechanically or electrically operated and fitted in front with a platform in the shape of two prongs of a fork. Lifting capacity varies from 1 to 45 tons. Clamps for reels and bales are provided on some forklift trucks.
Private Involvement in Port Investment and Operation
In many countries worldwide, governments and public port authorities have retreated from port operations. The core driver is the belief that enterprise-based port services and operations will allow for greater flexibility and efficiency in the market through more competition and a better response to customer demands. Ports, which have traditionally been run like a government department, are seeing private money promoting greater competition and higher productivity. Eventually, lower costs are passed on to importers and exporters. Often this involves the transfer of provision of services from public bodies to private enterprises. Ports have become a business attracting the attention of large investment groups and equity fund managers.
Ports are inclined to develop new governance structures, which should be tailored to the specific local conditions in terms of culture and commercial objectives, leading to several options. Four major types of combinations of port/terminal ownership and port/terminal operations can be distinguished:
∙ Public ownership and public participation in operations.
∙ Public ownership and private participation in port/terminal construction, operations, and management.
∙ Public ownership and private participation in superstructure installation (e.g. cranes) and operations.
∙ Private ownership and operations.
The use of the model of Public Ownership and Private Operations (POPO) is the most common and typically involves some form of Public Private Partnership (PPP) between the public (in the form of a government agency) and the private sector in providing a specific public service. Such partnerships require that risks, responsibilities, and returns be shared between the public and private sectors.
The use of PPP arrangements is widespread in the seaport industry to structure the responsibilities of terminal operators and port authorities concerning the construction, financing, and operations of the terminal facility. Commonly used arrangements include:
∙ Build-Lease-Operate (BLO). The government or port authority leases the construction and operation of the whole port or part of it to a private company through a long-term concession. The private company constructs facilities such as berths and terminals. In turn, the port authority controls the rights throughout the concession period and receives an annual lease payment.
∙ Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT). The government or public authority grants a concession or a franchise to a private company to finance and build or modernize a specific port facility. The private company is entitled to operate the facilities and to obtain revenue from specified operations or the full port for a designated time period. The private sector takes all commercial risks during the concession. At the end of the concession period, the government retakes ownership of the improved assets. Arrangements between the government and the private operator are set out in a concession contract that may or may not include regulatory provisions.
∙ Rehabilitate-Operate-Transfer (ROT). The government or public authority grants a concession to a private company to finance and rehabilitate or modernize a specific terminal or an entire port. This company is entitled to operate and obtain revenue from the rehabilitated port for a specific period. The private company takes all commercial risks, and at the end of the concession period, the government retakes ownership of the improved asset.
∙ Build-Rehabilitate-Operate-Transfer (BROT). The government or public authority grants a concession to a private company to finance, build and rehabilitate or modernize a specific terminal or an entire port. The private partner will build, operate, and obtain revenue from the rehabilitated port for a specific period. The private company takes on all commercial risks, and at the
end of the concession period, the government retakes ownership of the improved asset. BROT is a combination of the BOT and ROT mechanisms. ∙ Build-Operate-Share-Transfer (BOST). BOST is similar to BOT. A government grants a concession or a franchise to a private company to finance and build or modernize a specific port/terminal for a designated time period. The revenue obtained from terminal operations is shared with a designated public authority throughout the concession period. The government/public authority should ensure a specific quantity of throughput for revenue. The commercial risks are shared between the government and the concessionaire. At the end of the concession period, the government retakes ownership of the improved asset.
Critical success factors for a sound implementation of PPPs in the port context include the accuracy of the PPP contract, the ability to allocate and share the risk appropriately, the technical feasibility of the project, the commitment made by partners, the attractiveness of the financial package, a clear definition of responsibilities, the presence of a strong private consortium and a realistic cost/benefit assessment.
Container Terminal
A terminal facility specializing in the transshipment, handling, and temporary storage of containers between at least two transportation modes. They have a footprint including quays, yard areas, equipment such as cranes and other support facilities, including administrative and maintenance buildings and warehouses. It started emerging in the 1960s, container terminals brought an entirely new era in port development and terminal design. One of the first impacts concerned the required footprint, which expanded. A large container terminal occupies a substantial area, mainly because of storage requirements, even if this storage is short-term, usually 3 to 5 days. Where possible, early container terminals were created by converting existing general cargo terminals by tearing down on-dock warehouses to provide stacking yards. The outcome has been a wide variety of terminal configurations and a diversity between the available nautical profile and the yard footprint. Many ports did not have enough available space to accommodate the footprint for container terminal operations, which required the setting of new facilities and new port areas. This gave opportunities to experiment with container terminal designs to improve its operations. The design and operations of container terminals take into consideration the following constraints:
∙ The available land footprint that will limit terminal capacity, particularly yard storage.
∙ The nautical profile of the site that will command maximum ship size and the number of ships that can be serviced at a given time.
∙ The needed infrastructures and superstructures and their capital investments.
∙ The available transport infrastructures supporting the connectivity of the terminal with its hinterland.
Port terminals, including container terminals, are composed of integrated infrastructure and superstructure systems. The construction, maintenance, and upgrade of these elements require substantial capital investment. ∙ Land reclamation works.
∙ Capital dredging and maintenance dredging of access channels and basins.
∙ Quay-wall construction and maintenance.
∙ Apron, mooring equipment and fenders.
∙ Terminal handling equipment (ship-to-shore cranes, yard equipment, etc.).
∙ Electric installations and wiring.
∙ Telecommunication installations and wiring.
∙ Paving of the terminal.
∙ On-terminal rail facilities (yards and spurs).
∙ Roads on the terminal.
∙ Warehouses and technical buildings.
∙ Fencing and video surveillance (port security).
∙ Truck gates and inspection.
∙ Office buildings.
∙ Environmental mitigation (noise and emission standards abatements).
Container Terminal Facilities
A container terminal relies on an array of intermodal equipment to perform its operations, including straddle carriers, gantry cranes, and portainers (ship-to-shore cranes). The choice of equipment and its mix is related to a number of factors in terms of capital investment, volume, stacking density, and productivity.
∙ The forklift can be considered the most basic piece of intermodal equipment but has limitations and can handle only loaded 20-foot containers or empty containers of other dimensions. This is not a piece of equipment suitable for intermodal operations.
∙ The holstler truck is designed to move containers loaded on chassis or bomb carts within terminals. A chassis is a trailer designed to carry a container securely with twist locks, allowing for road transportation outside the terminal. A bomb cart is a heavy trailer designed to hold containers with side guides, allowing for quick yard operations, but cannot be used to carry containers outside the yard. Although it represents a low capital investment and can move containers at high speed, a holster truck is restricted to moving containers already loaded on chassis or bomb carts and therefore requires other handling equipment.
∙ The straddle carrier is a flexible piece of equipment that can be used for all intermodal operations such as loading/loading railcars and trucks and stacking containers up to three in height depending on whether the straddle carrier is a 3-high or 4-high. So, depending on the straddle carrier type, the stacking density may vary between 500 and 700 TEU per hectare. Straddle carriers are often used to move containers for piers to stacks.
∙ The front-end loader is a more restricted piece of equipment that can reach stacks of up to three full containers and can be used for double-stack intermodal rail operations. It can also be used to manage empty stacks by reaching up to eight empty containers in height.
∙ The reach stacker (also known as a side loader) is also a flexible piece of truck equipment performing intermodal operations for rail and trucks as well as the stacking of containers. Since reach stackers are limited to stacks of three full containers (four or five empty), they can support a stacking density of 500 TEU per hectare. They are often used in intermodal rail terminals and in maritime terminals for specialized moves (e.g. reefers).
∙ The rubber-tired gantry (RTG) is a fixed intermodal piece of equipment that is used for loading and unloading railcars from trucks in high density terminals as it can span over up to four rail tracks or six containers. It is also used for stacking operations to manage densities of up to 1,000 TEU per hectare with stacks of up to four full containers or five empty containers. It can service eight to nine trucks per hour, which involves 30-40 container movements since containers need to be reshuffled within their stacks. The RTG has higher acquisition costs but lower operational costs and fits well into regular container yard operations.
∙ The rail-mounted gantry (RMG) is a fixed piece of intermodal equipment that is widespan and can be used for intermodal operations over six to ten rail tracks, or 8 to 12 containers. While they tend to be mostly used at port terminals for operations over large container stacks, new intermodal rail terminals are increasingly relying on RMGs to perform intermodal operations over a series of train tracks, often with some below crane space for track-side stacking. Several RMG models can swivel, allowing for perpendicular crane side loading and unloading. An RMG used solely for stacking can accommodate densities above 1,000 TEU per hectare (four full or five empty containers).
∙ The portainer or ship-to-shore crane (STS) is a gantry crane strictly used to load and unload containerships and comes in different sizes based upon the ship class they can accommodate. While a Panamax portainer can accommodate ships up to 13 containers in width, a Post-Panamax portainer reaches up to 16 containers alongside each other. The latest class of portainers is dubbed “Ultra Post Panamax” and can handle the latest generation of containerships of 24,000 TEU by spanning up to 24 containers. The latest cranes can lift more than 150 tons at a time. Containers have to be brought to the portainer by holsters using chassis, bomb carts or straddle carriers. Portainers are equipped with spreaders that have twist locks on each corner to secure the container during hoisting. Spreader technology has evolved with quite a few portainers now able to perform twin and tandem lifting. Equipment manufacturers have also tested triple lifting and systems that can handle even more containers in one move.
The ongoing automation of intermodal terminals is replacing the manually operated conventional equipment with semi or fully automated improvements. This is particularly the case for portainers, gantries, and straddle carriers, which can be remotely controlled.
Yard Planning and Auxiliary Operations
Container storage represents a temporary buffer zone where containers are left while the assigned containership is available to be loaded or while waiting to be picked up for inland distribution. The larger the containerships handled by a port, the larger the required container storage yard. Container storage can be arranged by shipbound (export) and landbound (import) stacks of containers. For shared terminal facilities, stacks can even be sub-divided according to shippers. The stacking density of container storage varies depending on the selected equipment and the yard configuration.
For linear layout configurations, containers are either stored on a chassis (rare for port terminals but more common for rail terminals) or on linear stacks of two or three containers in height that straddle carriers can circulate over. Block layouts are serviced by rubber-tired gantry cranes or by rail
mounted (wide span) gantry cranes, enabling a higher storage density of at least four containers across (seven or eight for a wide span crane, if not more) and five full containers in height. However, higher stacking densities are linked with additional repositioning and rehandling of containers, requiring effective yard management systems. Rows of containers can be parallel or perpendicular to piers depending on the configuration and operations of the terminal.
Most terminals have a dedicated reefers (refrigerated containers) storage area where they can be plugged in, which represents, on average, about 5% of a terminal’s stacking area. Specific storage areas are also assigned to empties, which can be stacked up to seven or eight containers in height due to less stringent weight limitations. Empty container stacks are easily distinguishable from loaded container stacks because of different stacking configurations; empty stacks are higher and denser. For terminals facing capacity pressures, the tendency has been to have empty container depots outside terminal facilities. The majority of container yards also have storage for refrigerated containers, which requires specialized equipment, namely electric plugs.There are several methods to store and stack containers in a container yard, which is in its simplest form a flat paved surface. There are two fundamental models around which container yards are designed and operated: ∙
Linear layouts account for the simplest and least capital-intensive yard operations. At start, containers can be stored on chassis that can be parked in parallel (L1) for space maximization or diagonally (L2) to favor quick drop-off and retrieval (all called fishbone configuration). This organization is common for intermodal rail terminals. Straddle carrier configurations (L3) store containers one or two in height along rows over which straddle carriers drive. This is common for average density yards that can store around 700 TEU per hectare. Reach stackers can be used to stack full containers in piles up to 3 in height (L4), which is mainly used in intermodal terminals. The majority of container ports have empty stacks (L5) with higher stacks (about 5 containers) that are managed by reach stackers.
Block layouts are more capital-intensive as they rely on gantry cranes to manage stacks. A group of stacked containers serviced by a crane is called a block. Rubber-tired gantry cranes allow for higher stacking density in the range of 1,000 TEU per hectare where blocks can be sideloaded (B1; faster individual container access time but lower stacking density) or front-loaded (B2; slower individual container access time but higher stacking density). Wide-span gantry cranes operating on fixed rails allow for the highest stacking density, in the range of 2,000 TEU per hectare, and be sideloaded (B3) or front-loaded (B4). Automated container yards usually rely on front-loading gantries.
CFS & ICD
The container freight station (CFS) can be an important auxiliary operation within the terminal. It allows for the consolidation or deconsolidation of containerized loads, with direct interaction with the container yard. Accessing empty containers and providing loaded containers are among the key benefits of having CFS within or adjacent to a port terminal. They have become a common element of port logistics.
Since Shenzhen is a large manufacturing cluster, its export-oriented economy generates volumes of outbound containerized cargo. This cargo can be brought to a container freight station (CFS) where it can be consolidated into container loads. Empty containers are collected from the nearby port terminal (Yantian), brought to the CFS, filled with cargo, and then delivered to the container yard to be exported.
Most container freight stations have a specialization towards outbound or inbound cargo and can be located within a container port terminal, adjacent or in proximity. For inbound cargo, the CFS will be stripping containers into loads to be placed into domestic modes such as truckloads. Then, empty containers can be brought back to the container yard or an empty container depot to be made available for exports or to be repositioned.
Inland Container Depots (ICDs) and Container Freight Stations (CFSs) are also called dry ports as they handle all customs formalities related to import and export of goods at these locations. In a multi modal transport logistics system, ICDs and CFS act as hubs in the logistics chain. According to Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) guidelines, an Inland Container Depot (ICD)/Container Freight Station (CFS) may be defined as a common user facility with public authority status equipped with fixed installations and offering services for handling and temporary storage of import/export laden and empty containers carried under Customs control and with Customs and other agencies competent to clear goods for home use, warehousing, temporary admissions, re-export, temporary storage for onward transit and outright export. Transshipment of cargo can also take place from such stations.
Distinction between ICD and CFS
ICD and CFS offer services for containerization of break- bulk cargo and viceversa. Most ICDs are connected by rail to the respective gateway port, and this is a key difference between the ICD and CFS. CFSs are typically adjoining or are in close proximity to the mother port and often do not have rail connectivity. An ICD is generally located in the interiors (outside the port towns) of the country away from the gateway ports. CFS, on the other hand, is an off-dock facility located near the servicing ports which helps in decongesting the port by shifting cargo and Customs related activities outside the port area. CFSs are largely expected to deal with break-bulk cargo originating/terminating in the immediate hinterland of a port and may also deal with rail borne traffic to and from inland locations.
Functions of ICDs and CFSs
The primary functions of ICD or CFS may be summed up as under:
a. Receipt and dispatch/delivery of cargo.
b. Stuffing and stripping of containers.
c. Transit operations by rail/road to and from serving ports.
d. Customs clearance.
e. Consolidation and desegregation of LCL cargo.
f. Temporary storage of cargo and containers.
g. Maintenance and repair of container units.
Vessel Planning
Vessel planning mainly involves planning, executing and monitoring the loading and discharging operations of vessels at a terminal/port. The most important objective of vessel planning is to plan the vessel discharge and loading operations ensuring best stability and trim condition to the vessel, best productivity to the quay operation, safest operations for the terminal staff and smooth flow of traffic for the yard.
To ensure that vessels are turned around within its allocated port time, it is essential to pre-plan an efficient sequence of vessel operations and monitor closely the progress of operations. For marine safety, it is also critical that the discharging and loading activities are carried out in a manner, which ensures the stability of the vessel whilst alongside. Nowadays, vessel planning is a core module of a state-of-the art terminal operating system (TOS). The application module plans the sequence of discharge/loading of container from/onto a vessel taking into consideration the ship structure and the stowage of containers on board the vessel.
Types of Ships
Cargo ships are classified into various types based on purpose, size, type of cargo etc.
The economic factor is of prime importance in designing a merchant ship. Every owner wants maximum return on their investment, which means a ship’s construction not only depends on the current economic necessities, but the factor of future adaptability also plays a part.
Ships are mainly classified into the following types:
2. Bulk Carrier
3. Tanker Ships
4. Passenger Ships
5. Naval Ships
6. Offshore Ships
7. Fishing Ships
8. Special Purpose Ships
1. Container Ships
As the name suggests, a vessel structured specifically to hold huge quantities of cargo compacted in different types of containers is referred to as a container vessel (ship).
Types of Container Ships On Basis Of Sizes:
∙ Panamax
∙ Suezmax
∙ Post-Panamax
∙ Post-Suezmax
∙ Post-Malaccamax
2. Bulk Carrier Ships
Bulk carriers are a type of ship which transports cargoes (generally dry cargo) in bulk quantities. The cargo transported in such ships is loose cargo, i.e. without any specific packaging and generally contains items like food grains, ores and coals and even cement.
∙ Conventional bulkers
∙ Geared bulker
∙ Gearless bulker
∙ Self-discharging bulker
∙ Lakers
∙ BIBO
Some other forms of dry cargo are:
∙ Tramps: A boat or ship engaged in the tramp trade does not have a fixed schedule or published ports of call.
∙ Cargo Liners: An ocean liner is designed to transport passengers from point A to point B. The classic example of such a voyage would be a transatlantic crossing from Europe to America.
3. Tanker Ships
Tanker ships are specialised vessels for carrying a large amount of liquid cargo. Tankers are further sub-divided into different types based on the cargo they carry.
The main types of tankers are:
Oil Tankers: Oil tankers mainly carry crude oil and its by-products. Liquefied Gas Carriers: A gas carrier (or gas tanker) is designed to transport LPG, LNG or liquefied chemical gases in bulk.
Chemical and Product Carriers: A chemical tanker is a type of tanker ship designed to transport chemicals and different liquid products in bulk Other types of tankers: Some other types of tankers are juice tankers, wine tankers, integrated tug barges etc.
Based on their size, tankers are further divided into various types such as:
∙ VLCC
∙ ULCC
∙ Panamax
∙ Aframax
∙ Suezmax
∙ Capesize
∙ Handymax
∙ Lighters
∙ Handy
4. Roll-on Roll-Off Ships
Ro-Ro is an acronym for Roll-on/roll-off. Roll-on/roll-off ships are vessels that are used to carry wheeled cargo.
∙ Pure Car Carrier (PCC) and Pure Car and Truck Carrier (PCTC) RoRo Ships
∙ Container Vessel + Ro-Ro (ConRo) Ship
∙ General Cargo + Ro-Ro Ship (GenRo) Ships
∙ RoPax
∙ Complete RoRo Ships
5. Passenger Ships
Passenger ships, as the name suggests, are mainly used for transiting passengers.
They are mainly classified into:
Ferries – Vessels used for transiting passengers (and vehicles) on short-distance routes are called ferries.
Cruise Ships – Mainly used for recreational activities, cruise ships are like luxurious floating hotels with state-of-the-art facilities.
They are further classified as:
∙ Liners, Cruise Ships, Pilgrimage Ships
∙ Cross Channel Ferries, Coastal Ferries, Harbour Ferries
∙ Arctic and Antarctic Cruises
6. Offshore Vessels
Offshore vessels mainly help in oil exploration and construction jobs at sea. Offshore vessels are of several types.
Some of the main ones are:
∙ Supply Ship: Vessels that supply to offshore rigs
∙ Pipe Layers: Vessels engages in laying pipes and cables
∙ Crane Barges or floating cranes: A crane vessel, crane ship or floating crane is a ship with a crane specialized in lifting heavy loads
∙ Semi-submersible Drill Rigs: These are Mobile Offshore Drilling Units to make stable platforms for drilling oil and gas
∙ Drill Ships: A drillship is a merchant vessel designed for use in exploratory offshore drilling of new oil and gas wells or scientific drilling purposes
∙ Accommodation Barges: Could be a stand-alone floating hotel or can include accommodation as well as space for Cargo
∙ Production Platforms: To extract and process oil and natural gas or to temporarily store product until it can be brought to shore for refining and marketing
∙ Floating Storage Unit (FSU) – Floating vessel mainly used for storage of oil and by-products.
∙ Floating Production and Storage Unit (FPSO): A floating production storage and offloading unit is a floating vessel used by the offshore oil and gas industry for the production and processing of hydrocarbons and the storage of oil
∙ Anchor handling vessels – These are used for offshore construction and installation operations.
∙ Diving vessels – Are vessels used by divers for diving in the ocean for underwater jobs.
7. Fishing Vessels
Ships or boats used for recreational or commercial fishing at sea are called fishing vessels.
Fishing vessels are mainly classified into two types – trawlers and non trawling vessels.
∙ Trawlers, Purse Seiners: A fishing trawler, also known as a dragger, is a commercial fishing vessel designed to operate fishing trawls. Trawling is a method of fishing that involves actively dragging or pulling a trawl through the water behind one or more trawlers. A purse seine is a large wall of netting deployed around an entire area or school of fish. The seine has floats along the top line with a lead line threaded through rings along the bottom. Once a school of fish is located, a skiff encircles the school with the net.
∙ Factory Ships: A factory ship, also known as a fish processing vessel, is a large ocean-going vessel with extensive on-board facilities for processing and freezing caught fish or whales
8. Speciality Vessels
Speciality vessels are constructed and used for specific purposes. Tugs: A tug (tugboat) is a boat or ship that manoeuvres vessels by pushing or towing them.
Tenders – A boat or a larger ship used to service or support other boats or ships, generally to transport people and/or supplies, is called a tender vessel.
Pilot Crafts – Pilot crafts are used for the transportation of harbour pilots. Cable Layers – Cable laying vessels help in laying cables onto the sea bed.
Research Vessels – They are special types of vessels used to carry out a variety of research at sea. Some of the most common types of research vessels are – seismic vessels, hydrographic vessels, oceanographic vessels, polar vessels etc.
Salvage Vessels – Salvage vessels are vessels engaged in salvage operation; recovery of lost property at sea.
Lightships: A light vessel, or lightship, is a ship that acts as a lighthouse. They are used in waters that are too deep or otherwise unsuitable for lighthouse construction.
Barge Carriers: A barge is a flat-bottomed boat built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods.
Timber Carriers: Vessels that carry timber
Livestock Carriers: Vessels that carry livestock/animals
9. High-Speed Craft
High-speed crafts are a special type of technologically advanced high performance (typically high speed) marine vehicles. Though most of these technologies are not used in commercial vessels, a few have been successfully implemented and tested in conventional merchant vessels of small scale. Some of the main types of high-speed crafts are:
∙ Multihulls including wave piercers
∙ Small waterplane area, twin-hull (SWATH)
∙ Surface effect ship (SES) and Hovercraft
∙ Hydrofoil
∙ Wing in Ground Craft (WIG)
10. Dredgers
Dredging is an excavation activity usually carried out underwater, in shallow seas or freshwater areas, to gather up bottom sediments and widen. Dredgers are vessels with excavation tools used for removing sand and other types of deposits from the seabed. Dredgers are used for several purposes, such as making shallow coastal areas navigational, deep-sea mining etc.
Dredgers are mainly classified into two types:
1. Mechanical dredgers
2. Hydraulic dredgers
Types of Container
From the appearance of the first units in the 50s to the present day, a great variety of maritime and multimodal containers have emerged as a response from the logistics chain to ensure the correct handling of loads. Important points to keep in mind:
The size and weight of the load
The solid or liquid nature of the cargo
The degree of standardization of the cargo
The type of crane and spreader required for that cargo
1. Dry storage container:
Dry storage containers are the most common containers used in the shipping industry. They come in lengths of 20, 40 and 45 feet, and they are designed to transport dry goods. These containers do not allow for temperature controls, so they are not suited for moving food or chemicals that require refrigeration. There are about seventeen million intermodal containers in the world, and a large proportion of the world’s long-distance freight generated by international trade is transported in shipping containers. Their invention made a major contribution to the globalization of commerce in the second half of the 20th century, dramatically reducing the cost of transporting goods and hence of long-distance trade.
This type of container is handled by Spreaders. There is a very wide variety of spreaders according to the number of cycles and to the type of cranes to be used.
2. Flat rack container
A flat rack container has no top and only two sides. This makes room for heavy loads to be set the rack from above or from the side. Most flat rack containers are either 20 or 40 feet long, and they are made from steel for strength and durability. Some flat rack containers are collapsible, and some come with additional walls that can be attached to the frame.
This type of equipment is handled by Over height Frames.
3. Open top container
This type of container is basically a Dry Storage type but without top. This allows for easy loading of bulk cargo. There is a roof structure, plastic, that can be secured to the container with ropes, and that provides protection against rain and other forms of precipitation. This type of equipment is handled by Over
height Frames as the cargo might protrude from the top of the container.
4. Open side storage container
An open side container has one long side that can completely open. This is beneficial for wide merchandise that may be difficult to get through the end of a tunnel container or dry storage container. The side swings open as if it was made of two large doors, but it can still be secured to protect the merchandise inside. This type of container is handled by Spreaders.
5. Refrigerated ISO containers
A refrigerated container or reefer is an intermodal container used in intermodal freight transport that is refrigerated for the transportation of temperature-sensitive cargo. While a reefer will have an integral refrigeration unit, they rely on external power, from electrical power points (“reefer points”) at a land-based site, a container ship or on quay. When being transported over the road on a trailer or over rail wagon, they can be powered from diesel powered generators (“gen sets”) which attach to the container whilst on road journeys. Refrigerated containers are capable of controlling temperature ranging from -65 °C up to 40 °C. This type of container is handled by Spreaders.
6. ISO Tanks
Tanks are storage containers designed to hold liquids. They are usually constructed out of anti-corrosive materials because of the chemicals they are used to carry. Tanks may also be used to store dry goods like sugar, but they are most often used exclusively for liquids. As the Refrigerated container or the normal Dry storage this container is handled by standard spreaders.
7. Half height containers
Made mostly of steel, these containers are half the height of full-sized containers. Used especially for good like coal, stones etc. which need easy loading and unloading. This type of container is being used more and more for Containerized Bulk cargo. This type of containers can be transported and lifted by standard spreaders but lately, in the bulk materials market, are used with rotatory spreaders such as the RAM Revolver.
8. Special purpose containers
Special purpose containers can be made in nearly any shape or dimension. They are used to transport items that require a custom container to be made for them. Most shipping companies avoid the use of special purpose containers as much as possible because they are costly to create and transport. Nevertheless, this is necessary for certain loads.
Terminal congestion means that ships arrive at the port and cannot load or unload, as the terminal is already full. So, they can only queue up and wait for their turn to get a spot at the port.
Port congestion is a major challenge faced by many ports globally and can occur due to various reasons:
∙ Port or terminal is booked to more than its capacity
∙ Delays caused by bad weather which results in vessels lining up outside ∙ Industrial action or strikes
∙ Conflicts
∙ Pandemics like COVID-19
∙ Lack of port handling equipment
∙ Slow productivity
∙ Lack of yard space
∙ Restricted port access
∙ Location of the port
De-congesting the Terminal
While the physical limitations of port and transportation infrastructure are beyond a manufacturer's control, there are some tactics companies can take to ensure their goods flow smoothly from point to point. Arnie Bornstein, executive director of marketing and corporate communications with BDP International, a global logistics services provider, offers these suggestions for shipping products into and out of the United States.
Cargo Redistribution
Companies can achieve better supply balance by negotiating with various ocean carriers that have relationships with terminal operators in multiple ports, Bornstein notes. "This can provide viable options for your inbound and outbound supply chains without significantly impacting your costs."
"Profile your company's global carriage activity across various trade lanes and strategic business units to reduce duplication and inefficiency," he says. "Longer transit times between points of origin and destinations can be more successfully navigated by forecasting your demand and proper pre-planning. Build these profiles into transportation procurement and contracting processes."
Virtual Warehousing
Strategically managing your inventory (also known as inventory-in motion) by monitoring supply and demand during inland transit at the origin or destination can yield greater flexibility, Bornstein observes.
Change is Good
One thing that manufacturers and transportation carriers alike learned in the wake of the West Coast ports strike of 2002 is that they can always go to other ports of entry. To this day some companies have not returned to the Ports of Los Angeles/Long Beach, the busiest ports in the United States, choosing to either enter the country through other West Coast ports or to bypass the West Coast entirely in favor of Gulf ports or East Coast ports. Bornstein also notes, "2008 is a new contract year for West Coast port operators and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union," so plan accordingly.
Inside the Beltway
"Capacity constraints and antiquated labor work rules at U.S. and European ports, gridlock and massive delays are inevitable," he says. Manufacturers, carriers and all other interested parties need to communicate their concerns to the powers.
– III
Major Port Trust Act
The Major Port Trust Act, 1963 is an Act to make provision for the constitution of port authorities for certain major ports in India and to vest the administration, control and management of such ports in such authorities and for matters connected therewith.
This Act may be called the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963. It shall come into force on 16th October, 1963 as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint. It applies in the first instance to the major ports of Cochin, Kandla and Vishakhapatnam, and the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, ply2 the provisions of this Act to such other major port and with effect from such date, as may be specified in the notification.
Port as custodian of cargo
When imported goods are brought into Customs area, until an order of clearance is made by the proper officer of customs, the goods are taken care of by an authority approved as a custodian. This responsibility of caring for goods is not handled directly by the Customs Department. Section 45 empowers the Commissioner of Customs to approve a person as a Custodian for the purpose of the Act. The responsibility of the custodian commences in respect of imported goods the moment the aircraft is ready for unloading from the aircraft.
While the imported goods are in the custody of custodian, it has to be ensured that no one removes the goods from the Customs area without the written permission of the proper officer. The law also prohibits any kind of dealing with the goods while the imported goods are in the custody of the custodian. “Dealing” for this purpose would include, opening of packing, repacking, sampling, movement from one spot to another and the like. All such steps which have to be taken by the importer or his agent must be supported by a written authorization by the Customs officer.
The responsibility for safe custody of goods will subsist until the importer obtains an order of clearance from the proper officer of Customs and clears the goods from the Customs area. The custodian would be liable to pay the applicable duty of Customs on the lost or pilfered goods. The rate of duty will be determined based on the date of filling of IGM or Import Report under Section 30. [Sub-section (3)].
Transit Sheds
Sometimes it is not possible to clear all the import or export cargoes to their destinations by road transport or by railway, hence these cargos should be kept safe in the temporary storage. It is also essential for general cargo to verify the markings, quantity and safe delivery, hence all these activities are done in a temporary storage.
Hence transit sheds are a covered arrangement for the temporary storage of import cargoes in which incoming & outgoing cargo are kept for the purpose of safe protection. Transit shield is also termed as a transit godown. Transit sheds may have a godown type of structure having one or two storeys in height.
1. Floor area of shed is 56 m²
2. Capacity of shed is 470 m³
3. Quay space is 11 m²
Following are the various construction requirements
1. Rapid opening & closing doors are to be used
2. Transit sheds should have advanced five fighting system
3. It should have adequate light. In day time there should be continuous sky light
4. Light & fine resisting materials should be used for the construction of transit sheds
5. The transit shed should be located adjacent to the quay and it should have maximum capacity for storing incoming and outgoing cargo at a time. There should be a road and rail path for fast or quick transit of cargo. Equipment such as cranes should be readily available when required.
Types of Cargo
The cargoes carried by maritime transportation come into several categories, each requiring the usage of specialized ships. The two main categories are general and bulk cargo. General cargo is unitized (carried in defined load units), while bulk cargo is loose (carried in any quantity). General cargo can be sub-divided into three categories:
∙ Break Bulk. Concerns cargo that is carried in drums, bags, pallets, or boxes. Such ships are typically geared.
∙ Neo Bulk. Concerns cargo where each pre-packaged unit is accountable such as lumber (bundles), paper (rolls), steel, and vehicles.
∙ Containerized. The growth of container shipping required creating a new general cargo category where the cargo is being carried in container load units.
Bulk cargo can be divided into two categories:
∙ Liquid bulk. The majority of the liquid bulk carried is petroleum LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas), representing an emerging segment. Liquid bulk ships are commonly referred to as tankers.
∙ Dry Bulk. Concerns a wide variety of materials such as coal, iron ore, grains, bauxite, and sand.
In today’s global economy, the goods we use or need are transported both domestically and internationally. Typically, each product might need a specific type of handling and carriage.
Here is an overview of the types of cargo that can be handled in marine ports.
1. Shipping Containers
With different sizes (8’6” & 9’6” heights and 20′, 40′, 45′ feet lengths) and different types (standard dry, refrigerated, open top, open side, flexi-tank and flat rack) people ship various goods inside containers. Container vessels carry these containers and they are very easy to handle.
2. Automotive/Roro Cargo
This type of cargo could be cars, buses, trucks, agricultural vehicles and cranes. If cargo is self-propelled, it could just be driven inside a roro vessel. But if it is not, the cargo is placed on self-propelled handling equipment. Just a note: there are very large roro vessels built in Japan to export their manufactured cars.
3. Bulk Cargo
These can be dry or liquid. They are not packed and they are carried in large quantities in bulk vessels. Some examples are grain, coal, iron ore, sugar, crude oil, and vegetable oil.
4. Breakbulk Cargo
Breakbulk cargo could be carried in both containers or on general cargo vessels. They could be packed in many ways such as palletized, bagged, boxed, barreled or unpacked. Or, they can be general cargo like rolled steel, steel rods, wood, wind tribune wings, etc.
In short, a port is a place within the harbour where a ship can dock for a commercial purpose of either handling cargo or passengers or taking care of the ship’s requirements.
Ports play a very crucial role in transporting various types of goods and some ports are classified based on the cargo that they handle. For example, ports that specialize in handling
∙ Iron Ore – Port Hedland, Australia,
∙ Crude Oil – Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia
∙ Grain – New Orleans, USA
∙ Passengers – Puerta Maya, Cozumel, Mexico
Berth
Berth/Quay
Each port or terminal will in turn have several berths/quays which usually has shore equipment for handling cargo, covered sheds, open cargo storage areas etc where the cargo is discharged, loaded and may be stored.
A berth is basically an area where the ship is moored onto the bollards and where the cargo is loaded or discharged on and off the ships. The land area surrounding the berth is also sometimes referred to as a quay depending on where you are from.
One container terminal can have several berths/quays where several ships can be handled at the same time.
As an example, you can see below image of Brani Container Terminal in Singapore where you can see 6 container ships under operation. Each ship is moored at a different berth and the area immediately behind the cranes on the land side may be termed as a quay.
Vessel draft or vessel draught
Vessel draft (draft in the American spelling, draught in the British) is one of the principal dimensions of any waterborne vessel and is defined in technical terms as the distance between the ship’s keel and the waterline of the vessel. The keel of a ship is the lowest longitudinal support member that helps form the structure of the vessel, while the waterline of any floating body is the location on the hull of a ship where the air-water interface occurs.
The difference between the total height of the vessel and the draft is called the freeboard and is measured from the waterline to the upper deck. Simply put, the draft and freeboard combine to give the height of any vessel. Along with the length (denoted as Lpp or length between perpendiculars) and breadth (denoted as B) of the vessel, the draft (denoted as T) is an important physical quantity that defines both the ship stability and the permissible loads that may be stored onboard without generating any adverse effects.
The draft of most ships varies longitudinally from the bow to the stern, and this results in varying drafts along the length of the vessel. Thus, the accurate manner to indicate the draft of a particular boat or ship is to mention either the location at which the draft has been measured, or whether the ship has an even keel during floating conditions.
Bulk Cargo Handling Equipment
So far as dry bulk cargoes are concerned, handling facilities may be in the form of power-propelled conveyor belts, usually fed at the landward end by a hopper (a very large container on legs) or grabs, which may be magnetic for handling ores, fixed to a high capacity traveling crane or traveling gantries. These gantries move not only parallel to the quay, but also run back for considerable distances, and so cover a large stacking area, and are able to plumb the ship's hold. These two types of equipment are suitable for handling coal and ores. In the case of bulk sugar or when the grab is also used, the sugar would be discharged into a hopper, feeding by gravity a railway wagon or road vehicle below. Elevators (US) or silos are normally associated with grain. They may be operated by pneumatic suction which sucks the grain out of the ship's hold.
Liquid Cargo Handling Equipment
The movement of liquid bulk cargo, crude oil and derivatives, from the tanker is undertaken by means of pipelines connected to the shore-based storage tanks. Pumping equipment is provided in the tanker storage plant or refinery ashore, but not on the quayside. In view of the dangerous nature of such cargo, it is common practice to build the special berths a small distance from the main dock system on the seaward side. Oil cargo is discharged from the ship’s tanks, via the cargo piping system to the main ship’s manifold usually situated amidships, on either port or starboard side. From there by means of shore-based loading, oil is transferred to the shore manifold and is then distributed to shore-based storage tanks on the oil terminal. The loading arm hose must be flanged oil-tight to the ship’s manifold so that oil spills can be avoided.
General Cargo Handling Equipment
With regard to general cargo (goods, merchandise, commodities), also referred to as break bulk cargo, almost 90 percent of all such cargo in most liner cargo trades today is containerized. Meanwhile the system of dockers handling cargo will continue, but doubtless every effort will be made to expand the already extensive use of various types of mechanized cargo-handling equipment. General cargo is handled by cranes on the quay, floating cranes or by the ship's own cargo gear (deck cranes, derricks, etc.). Attached to such lifting gear is a shackle which links the crane or derrick with the form of cargo handling equipment being used. For most lifts a hook is used. There are numerous types of tools or loose gear that can be attached to the shipboard or shore-based lifting gear. They include the sling or strop, which is probably the most common form of loose gear. Such equipment, generally made of rope, is ideal for hoisting strong packages, such as wooden cases or bagged cargo, which is not likely to sag or be damaged when raised. Similarly, snotters or canvas slings are suitable for bagged cargo. Chain slings, however, are used for heavy slender cargoes, such as timber or steel rails. Can or barrel hooks are suitable for hoisting barrels or drums. Cargo nets are suitable for mail bags and similar cargoes that are not liable to be crushed when hoisted. Heavy lifting beams are suitable for heavy and long articles such as locomotives, boilers or railway passenger coaches. Cargo trays and pallets, the latter being wooden or of steel construction, are ideal for cargo of moderate dimensions, which can be conveniently stacked, such as cartons, bags, or small wooden crates or cases.
Port/Terminal Cargo Handling Equipment
A lot of terminal or port cargo handling equipment is provided to facilitate movement of the cargo to and from the ship's side and the transit shed, warehouse, barge, railway wagon or road vehicle. These include two-wheeled hand barrows and four-wheeled trucks either manually or mechanically propelled, and mechanically or electrically propelled tractors for hauling four wheeled trailers. Ro-ro trailers are moved by tug-masters or ro-ro tractors. There are also belt conveyors mechanically or electrically operated, or rollers, all perhaps extending from the quayside to the transit shed, warehouse, railway wagon or road vehicle. Containers are loaded and unloaded by means of the quayside container cranes, i.e. container gantries also called shiptainers. Transtainers or stacking cranes, straddle carriers, van carriers, front and side loading fork-lift trucks are used for moving and stacking containers within the terminal up to five-high, i.e. five containers one above the other. Mechanically powered straddle carriers are designed to distribute containers on the quay and on the terminal. Fork lift trucks (FLT) are mechanically or electrically operated and fitted in front with a platform in the shape of two prongs of a fork; lifting capacity varies from 1 to 45 tons. Clamps for reels and bales are provided on some fork lift trucks. On the docks various types of dockside cranes, level luffing cranes, mobile cranes etc. are used for moving and lifting packages. All the vertical cargo movements are conducted by the lifting gear (lift-on/lift-off equipment). Roll-on/roll-off cargoes, i.e. containers and heavy loads on trailers, roll on and off the ro-ro ship via stern, bow or quarter ramps. They are lifted to various decks on board by means of scissor-supported platforms.
Extra Services of Port
Port services include the receiving, handling, unloading and even additional shipping of clients’ products once they arrive at port and come off the ship. Port services also provide an overview of the product at arrival and departure, providing an extra layer of protection should any of your products arrive damaged. Port services documentation helps you have more successful damage claims. It processes and then stores your material in a secure, patrolled facility, and when required, can deliver your materials to local customers to be sold or further processed. If your customer is not local, we can often help secure you a place to ship your product by rail.
Tugs and Its Usage
A tug, or more commonly a tugboat, is a secondary boat which helps in the mooring or berthing operation of a ship by either towing or pushing a vessel towards the port.
A tug is a special class of boat without which mega-ships cannot get into a port. Along with the primary purpose of towing the vessel towards the harbour, tug boats can be engaged to provide essentials, such as water, air, etc., to the vessel.
Tug boat eases the manoeuvring operation of vessels by forcing or tugging them towards the port. Mega vessels can never be manoeuvred on their own. Also, with the increased boat size, they need tug boats to carry some of their domains and tow them through narrow water channels.
A tug, or more commonly a tugboat, is a secondary boat which helps in the mooring or berthing operation of a ship by either towing or pushing a vessel towards the port.
A tug is a special class of boat without which mega-ships cannot get into a port. Along with the primary purpose of towing the vessel towards the harbour, tug boats can be engaged to provide essentials, such as water, air, etc., to the vessel.
Tug boat eases the manoeuvring operation of vessels by forcing or tugging them towards the port. Mega vessels can never be manoeuvred on their own. Also, with the increased boat size, they need tug boats to carry some of their domains and tow them through narrow water channels.
Usage of a Tug
The usage and functions of tugs vary from port to port as different ports have different requirements and intakes. The common is pushing or towing mega boats or barges. Their usage depends on the following factors: ∙ Port traffic volume,
∙ Types of ships to be served by that tug,
∙ Navigational obstacles to be catered to,
∙ Conditions of environmental protection,
∙ Local laws and
∙ Domains to be carried by a tug
The tug boats were one of the first to have a steam propulsion engine, which the diesel engine has replaced today. An average tug boat has 680-3400 horsepower engines (500-2500 kW), but boats which are larger and venture out into deep waters have engines with a power close to 27200 hp (20000 kW) and a power: tonnage ratio ranging between 2.20-4.50 for large tugs and 4.0-9.5 for harbour tugs.
Pilot
The pilot has the onerous task of navigating the ship into the local port as they have overall expertise on specific local conditions existing in the port area. The local pilots are aware of channel depths, any dredging operations done, navigational hazards like underwater cables, and other obstacles. In general, they provide local knowledge and experience to the Captain of the ship to ensure that navigational safety and the environment are not compromised. However, very little is known or shared about these professionals without whom the ships that we rely on for our consumer or industrial goods may not make it safely in and out of ports.
Ships move in and out of port at all odd hours and therefore pilots around the world work irregular and different timelines which messes with their circadian rhythm, akin to someone feeling jet lag.
Pilots also have to be reasonably fit as their work involves many physical tasks such as boarding moving ships. A small high-powered launch commonly known as Pilot Launch will transport the Pilot from the Port Control Tower or Pilot Station to the ship which could be several nautical miles away. The pilot then has to be able to climb a high ladder (usually a rope ladder) onto the moving ship to access the deck which is several meters high depending on the size of the ship.
Port Tariff
The then Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport & Highways (MSRTH) issued Tariff Guidelines of 2005 for tariff fixation of Major Port Trusts and BOT operators vide its letter No.PR-14019/5/2003-PG dated 14 March 2005. The Tariff Guidelines of 2005 were to remain in force for a period of 5 years unless reviewed earlier or extended. The Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP) and the Ministry of Shipping (MoS) in the Government of India took efforts to evolve Tariff Guidelines for fixation of tariff on normative basis for Major Port Trusts and the BOT Terminals operating thereat. Efforts of MoS and TAMP to formulate revised Tariff Guidelines on normative basis, could not materialise as the Study undertaken in this regard pointed out the difficulties in application of uniform norms to BOT Terminals. The Study also recognised that any move from cost plus approach prescribed in 2005 Tariff Guidelines to normative approach would adversely impact on the operations of some BOT operators. In the circumstance, a need was felt to look at an alternative model of Tariff Guidelines. In the meanwhile, the validity of the Tariff Guidelines of 2005 was extended from time to time.
TARIFF GUIDELINES, 2019 FOR DETERMINATION OF TARIFF FOR BOT OPERATORS OPERATING IN MAJOR PORT TRUSTS AND PREVIOUSLY GOVERNED BY 2005 TARIFF GUIDELINES.
1.1. These directions are issued to the Tariff Authority for Major Ports (the “TAMP”) under Section 111 of the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963 as amended from time to time (the “MPT Act”), for regulation of tariffs for BOT operators operating at Major Ports to whom the Tariff Guidelines 2005 are applicable.
1.2. These Tariff Guidelines may be called Tariff Guidelines, 2019, for regulation of tariff for BOT operators operating in Major Port Trusts, under the Tariff Guidelines, 2005.
1.3. These Tariff Guidelines will be applicable to all Build, Operate, Transfer (BOT) Terminal operators operating in Major Port Trusts who were previously governed by the Tariff Guidelines of March 2005.
1.4. These Tariff Guidelines will apply for regulating the tariff for the services listed under Section 48 of the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963 which are authorised by the concerned Major Port Trusts to BOT operators under Section 42 (3) of the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963.
1.5. These Tariff Guidelines shall come into effect prospectively from the date on which they are notified by TAMP in the Gazette of India and until these are further reviewed.
1.6 The BOT Operators whose Scale of Rates (SOR) approved by TAMP under the Tariff Guidelines 2005 are valid may either file proposal for review of their SOR under this Guidelines during the currency of the existing SOR or after expiry of the validity of the existing SOR.
1.7. This is a broad Tariff Policy framework. The TAMP will, in consultation with all the concerned BOT operators and Major Port Trusts issue Working Guidelines along with the formats for filing the proposal to operationalise this Tariff Guidelines framework.
1.8. Unless the context otherwise requires, various terms used herein will have the same definition as in the MPT Act, 1963, and the Indian Ports Act, 1908, as amended from time to time.
1.9. The BOT operator shall continue to abide by the provisions contained in the existing Concession Agreement entered into with the concerned Major Port Trust. Simultaneously, the BOT operator shall agree to abide by these guidelines, by way of a separate Agreement with the concerned Major Port Trust.
1.10. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to these Tariff Guidelines, the Central Government may in consultation with BOT operators, Major Port Trusts and TAMP make such orders, as may appear to be necessary for removing the difficulty.
Determination of Scale of Rates
2.1. Each BOT operator will assess the Annual Revenue Requirement (ARR) as on the financial year ending on 31st March or 31st December, as the case may be as followed by the BOT Operator for maintaining its Accounts. The ARR is the average of the sum of Actual Expenditure as per the final Audited Accounts of the immediate preceding three years (Y1), (Y2) and (Y3) at the time of submitting the proposal plus Return at 16% of Capital Employed. Capital employed shall be as per Clause 2.5.
2.2. ‘Royalty/Revenue share’ payable to the landlord port by the BOT operator will not be allowed as an admissible cost for tariff computation as decided by the Ministry of Shipping vide its Order No.PR14019/6/2002-PG dated 29 July 2003. In those cases where the bidding process was finalised before 29 July 2003, the tariff computation will take into account royalty / revenue share as cost subject to maximum of the amount quoted by the next highest bidder for tariff fixation.
2.3.1 Actual Expenditure will be the total expenditure as reflected in the Audited Annual Accounts of the BOT operators duly certified by a practicing Chartered Accountant / Cost Accountant, subject to following adjustments:
(i). Royalty/ Revenue share payment to be excluded to the extent not admissible in tariff fixation complying with provisions prescribed at clause 2.2. above.
(ii). Interest on loans, provision for bad and doubtful debts, provision for slow moving inventory etc., are to be excluded. 2.3.2. In case there is variation in the expenditure reported under IND AS and IGAAP (like depreciation), then necessary adjustments can be done in ARR computation by excluding IND AS figures and considering figures as per IGAAP. This should be supported with a detailed working & reconciliation statement.
2.4. Expenditure for each of the three years Y1, Y2 and Y3 is to be determined in the above manner. Thereafter, a simple average of the expenditure shall be worked out.
2.5. Capital Employed will comprise of Gross Fixed assets (Property, Plant & Equipment) [as arrived as per the Indian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (IGAAP)] plus capital work in progress as on 31 March/ 31 December of the year Y3 to be restated from the figures reported under IND AS in the Audited Annual Accounts as on 31 March/ 31 December of the year Y3 and working capital as per norms prescribed in clause 2.6. of this Tariff Guidelines. The BOT operators shall furnish a reconciliation statement duly certified by a Chartered Accountant/ Cost Accountant reconciling the figures of Audited Accounts and Gross Fixed Assets (Property, Plant & Equipment) under IGAAP considered by them giving details of the adjustment. Capital employed shall be duly certified by a practicing Chartered Accountant / Cost Accountant
2.6. Working capital will comprise inventory, sundry debtors and cash balances. Limit on inventory for capital spares will be one year’s average consumption and in case of other items of inventory the limit will be six months’ average consumption of stores excluding fuels. This, however, will not be applicable for customized spares. Insurance on spares shall be part of the equipment procurement cost. The limit on cash balance will be one month’s cash expenses. Advance payment of Revenue Share / royalty to the landlord port flowing from the contractual obligations will be recognised as a part of sundry debtors. Advance payment of lease rental / license fee to landlord port flowing from the contractual obligations will be recognised as part of sundry debtors.
2.7. Return on Capital Employed is to be computed at 16%
2.8. The ARR so assessed as on 31 March or 31 December of Y3, as the case may be, will be indexed by 100% of the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) applicable as communicated by TAMP to the BOT operators to arrive at the indexed ARR for the immediate subsequent year.
2.9. The ARR determined by the BOT operators as per clause 2.8 above is the ceiling Annual Revenue Requirement based on which the BOT operators will draw the Scale of Rates (SOR).
2.10. For drawing the SOR, the traffic to be considered would be the average of the actual traffic handled by the BOT operator during the years Y1, Y2 and Y3. The actual traffic should be duly certified by the concerned Major Port Trust within 10 days.
2.11.1. Based on the Annual Revenue Requirement as assessed as per Clause 2.9 above and taking into account the traffic as per Clause 2.10 above, the BOT operator will have the flexibility to determine the rates to respond to the market forces based on its commercial judgment and draw the SOR within the ceiling of Annual Revenue Requirement, duly certified by a practising Chartered Accountant/ Cost Accountant. The BOT Operator shall have the option to draw SOR to achieve revenue lower than the ceiling ARR. In this regard, BOT operators will make a detailed working of income estimation indicating each of the tariff items in the proposed SOR for corresponding traffic as in clause
2.10 above and establish itself that the sum of the revenue so determined from all the tariff items in the SOR is within the ceiling of the ARR determined in clause 2.9. above duly certified by a practicing Chartered Accountant/ Cost Accountant.
2.11.2. The BOT operators shall ensure that proposed SOR includes tariff for all the services rendered by them and which fall under the list of services prescribed in Section 48 of the Major Port Trusts Act 1963.
2.11.3. If the BOT operator is of the view that any of the existing conditionalities in the SOR need to be modified / deleted or new condition to be added due to operational or any other contingency, the BOT operator may propose such modification with justification and capture the financial / revenue impact, if any, in the revenue estimation.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Like Dislike Helpful