The Philippines | Ports and Shipping News

[hakz2007]

it's okay as long as it is news and updates....

[pTaMo]

New gunboats a big boost to RP's maritime security, says PNP-Maritime Group

The Philippine National Police-Maritime Group (PNP-Maritime) has welcomed the turn over of four new patrol gun boats from the United States government to the command as a big boost to the country’s maritime security.

PNP-Maritime Group director Chief Supt. Francisco Don Montenegro noted that the four Police Patrol Boats (PPB) will be the first patrol vessels to be detailed to the Maritime Group.

He said Maritime Group personnel are now undergoing training to handle the new acquisitions.

”Our personnel are presently undergoing training for boat handling,” said Montenegro.

Aside from the PNP-Maritime, the elite Special Action Force (SAF) is the other specialized PNP unit which has gunboats. The SAF is operating five patrol vessels.

Montenegro said two more gunboats from the US are scheduled to arrive this year to further improve the PNP-Maritime’s capability.

The PNP-Maritime chief said the four newly-acquired patrol gunboats will be deployed initially to PNP’s Special Boat Unit in Balabac Island.

Montenegro, however, noted that the ideal number of gunboats is two for each of the 16 Maritime offices throughout the country.

PNP spokesman Sr. Supt. Agrimero Cruz Jr. said each boat is worth P18 million.

No less than PNP chief Director General Jesus Verzosa on Monday formally received from US Ambassador Harry Thomas four 31-footer rigid-hull bouyant boats in formal turnover ceremonies in Puerto Princesa City.

The PNP's acquisition of the four PPBs is part of the technical assistance package provided by the US government to the PNP through the US International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP).

The PPBs, manufactured by NAIAD of Rhode Island, USA is powered by twin 250HP engines that can reach speeds up to 51 knots, and is fully equipped with navigation, communication and weapons systems.

The ICITAP has provided the technical assistance and logistics for establishment of the Special Boat Unit (SBU) of the PNP Maritime Group stationed in Puerto Princesa City.

Last year, the PNP inaugurated the headquarters and boathouse of the SBU in Palawan, constructed in a 2,000-square-meter lot donated by the city government of Puerto Princesa City and funded by an ICITAP grant.

[hakz2007]

MSL to acquire eight more ships

MANILA, Sept. 5 (PNA) -- Montenegro Shipping Lines (MSL), one of the country's leading operators of roll-on/roll-off (RORO) vessels, announced that it will be acquiring eight new ships in order to achieve its goal of servicing more routes.

The shipping line said it be spending P1 billion for its vessel acquisition program.

The ships will be sourced from Japan and can carry eight buses and 500 passenger each.

MSL general manager Vicente Montenegro Jr. said the new vessels will be deployed to Pioduran and Esperanza in Region 5 and in its other service areas such as Southern Leyte-Surigao and Batangas.

The company is looking at loans from the Maritime Leasing Corp. (MLC) of the Development Bank of the Philippines, United Coconut Planters Bank and Banco de Oro to finance the acquisition.

MLC earlier signed a P152-million lease-to-own transaction with the shipping firm covering the purchase of a medium-sized RORO vessel for deployment in a missionary route.

It is also asking the government to come up with a program to rationalize the deployment of ro-ro vessels.

The company said some routes are overcrowded resulting in cutthroat competition.

MSL has fleet of 43 RORO vessels, seven fastcrafts and 45 air-conditioned buses.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=...d=3&rid=298806

[hakz2007]

MARINA administrator vows more safety checks for RORO ships

MANILA, Sept. 13 (PNA) - In line with its efforts to improve the country's maritime safety record, newly-appointed Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) Administrator Emerson Lorenzo vows to intensify safety inspections in the country's roll-on, roll-off (RORO) fleet.

Lorenzo, in an interview, said the inspections will be conducted randomly nationwide and will focus on water integrity on all RORO ramps, ship stability, load-line and free-board limit, cargo securing, and competency of the ships' crew manning the ships.

The five mentioned areas are critical to the seaworthiness of RORO crafts as overloading, lack of structural integrity are the primary causes of accidents in the domestic fleet.

The MARINA administrator said that this check is different from the annual ship worthiness test being conducted by the agency.

He added that RORO operators found guilty of the above-mentioned violations will be severely penalized.

The MARINA administrator pointed out that this policy was brought about by reports of ships' passengers complaining of the dilapidated RORO vessels used in transporting them in their respective destinations, especially those plying the Manila-Marinduque route.

"The typhoon season is fast approaching so it is only fitting that we do this random safety inspections efficiently," Lorenzo stressed.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=...d=6&rid=300284

[hakz2007]

Free ports to adopt e-cargo transfer system

SUBIC BAY FREE PORT—The three adjoining free ports of Subic, Clark and Bataan will start utilizing high technology this month to ensure the fast, safe and secure transfer of cargo to their registered business locators as well as to thwart smuggling and diversion of imported goods.

According to the Subic-Clark Alliance for Development (SCAD), officials from the three free ports of Central Luzon recently met with SCAD and Bureau of Customs (BOC) officials “to tie loose ends” before the Sept. 16 implementation of the Enhanced Automated Cargo Transfer System (e-Acts), which is touted to improve the country’s import shipments system.

The free ports summit was attended by officials of the SCAD and the BOC, and representatives of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), Clark Development Corp. (CDC) and the Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan (Afab).

“All concerned agencies vowed to exert greater efforts in responding to the call of President Benigno S. Aquino for a better business environment and a more favorable investment climate in the Philippines that will lead to a better way of life for Filipinos,” the SCAD said in a statement.

The e-Acts was designed to provide for a more efficient movement of imports from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, the Port of Manila and the Manila International Container Port Terminal to the various export producers located in Subic, Clark and Bataan free ports.

The new system reportedly stands out compared to previous systems because it utilizes modern technology to provide a faster, more economical and simpler process of documenting and processing of clearances, as well as the transfer and admission of foreign merchandise from ports of discharge.

And because e-Acts substitutes electronic or Internet protocols for face-to-face transactions, it is expected to help stamp out corruption in import transactions and to cut overhead costs among free-port locators by allowing the immediate delivery and use of transit goods.

With its built-in antismuggling or antidiversion feature, e-Acts will serve as a showcase of the BOC’s “intention and commitment to put a stop to the abuse of the importation privilege of some unscrupulous free-port zone export producers,” said Customs Commissioner Angelito Alvarez.

Speaking for the free ports, Afab chairman and administrator Deogracias Custodio said the implementation of the e-Acts “will be a reflection of the constant efforts of the Philippine free ports to improve the level of services that they offer to their locators in order to become the free ports of choice in the world.”

SCAD chairman Nestor Mangio expressed optimism that the new system would create a better business environment in Clark and Subic that would, in turn, result in more investments and more jobs for local residents.

“Needed revenues to fuel the local economy will increase. Entrepreneurship potentials for local suppliers will be developed. Even local tourism will be favorably affected,” Mangio added.

The implementation of the e-Acts will be the latest in a series of cooperation programs between the BOC and the free ports in Central Luzon to curb smuggling and plug revenue leaks from goods imported into the free ports and later sold outside the special economic zones.

On July 15 the SBMA and the BOC began using the electronic Gatepass Management System (GMS) for shipments brought into the Subic Bay Free Port to ensure that only “legal goods” would exit the gates here.

Like the e-Acts system, the GMS was designed to make it even harder for smugglers to use the port of Subic, as well as to reduce the time and cost of doing business in this free port.

http://businessmirror.com.ph/home/re...ransfer-system

[hakz2007]

Coast Guard: Billion thanks for budget hike

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has sent “one billion thanks” to President Benigno Aquino III for setting aside close to P3 billion as the 2011 budget of what the PCG commandant acknowledged as “one of the world’s most over-challenged coast guards.”

Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo, PCG chief, said the P1-billion increase in the agency’s budget (from P2 billion this year) was a “big boost” to the Coast Guard.

With increased funding, the Coast Guard, now attached to the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC), is “in a better position to guard the country’s many coasts,” Tamayo said.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a higher budget for the DOTC, including the Coast Guard.

A huge chunk of the Coast Guard’s 2011 budget will go to salaries, recruitment of 500 additional men and the purchase of at least two helicopters, according to Lt. Commander Arman Balilo.

The Coast Guard plans to acquire a total of seven new helicopters.

The Coast Guard “has ships where these helicopters can land,” said Tamayo.

It also allocated P376.5 million for the installation of an undisclosed number of lighthouses in remote fishing villages nationwide.

The Coast Guard also plans to put up a buoy base in Romblon and Cebu and navigational aids in the vicinity of the San Juanico Strait in Leyte.

Early this year, the agency said it needed at least P733.02 million for its personnel and fleet expansion programs.

The Philippines has over 36,000 kilometers of coastline and thousands of coastal communities.

“About 90 percent of our domestic trade is being transported by commercial vessels. The country is also visited by at least 20 typhoons each year,” Tamayo said.

But he expressed confidence that the agency “can grow significantly during the next few years.”

“I’m optimistic that the Coast Guard will continue to grow (under the Aquino administration),” he said. “Perhaps, this is the time for our new government to be more maritime-minded.”

Earlier in an interview, Tamayo urged the Aquino administration to “look more sea-wide,” saying the country has the “third or fourth longest coastline in the world.”

“We have to have a strong Coast Guard. Otherwise, we will lose a lot of our natural wealth,” he said.

In the last 10 years, the Coast Guard has acquired only seven search-and-rescue vessels, two of which came from the Australian government.

The command has “only 20 credible ships, meaning, these are relatively modern vessels.”

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquire...or-budget-hike

[hakz2007]

Ports reclamation: Enrile takes up cudgels for ICTSI

MANILA, Philippines—It is the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), not the City of Manila, that has exclusive jurisdiction and control of the Port of Manila, according to Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile.

Enrile issued this statement in the wake of moves by Manila City Hall officials, led by Vice Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, to impose additional fees on ships docked at the Port of Manila and investigate an ongoing reclamation being undertaken by the International Container Terminal and Services Inc. (ICTSI) for a new berth in the port.

“These moves betray the utter ignorance of their proponents of the governing laws and jurisprudence on the matter. These will illegally impinge upon the exclusive jurisdiction granted by law to the PPA and will clearly exceed the powers granted to local governments,” said Enrile.

The issue concerns a proposed ordinance filed with the city council seeking to impose a “marine water usage tax” of P5,000 per day from all local and foreign ships that would dock in the port, and to require approval from the city mayor and council for land reclamation and construction of a new berth at the port.

Enrile said Draft Ordinance No. 7255 as well as the city government’s move against the reclamation project had no legal basis and violated the exclusive jurisdiction conferred upon the PPA by Presidential Decree No. 857.

He said that private port contractors of the Port of Manila are under the control of the PPA and all fees that they charge to public port users are regulated by the PPA, including wharfage dues, arrastre, stevedoring, storage and other fees.

“Therefore, to impose an additional charge for the entry into and use of the marine waters of the City of Manila is patently illegal and highly questionable,” said Enrile.

He warned that the additional fees would further distort shipping costs in the country that he said were already among the highest in the world.

“If this is allowed, what would stop other local municipalities and cities from inordinately imposing the same or even higher charges for the use of their respective municipal or city marine waters?” the senator said.

The Manila city government has also launched a high-profile investigation into the reclamation project at Isla Puting Bato in Tondo, inside the Manila International Container Terminal complex on the pretext that its operator, ICTSI, did not secure a mayor’s permit and a city ordinance.

Enrile said that the state had, through the PPA, already given its approval for the project to construct an additional berth at the port, which he said would enhance the terminal’s capacity to handle a larger volume of goods with the increase in the number of vessels it can accommodate.

“Neither the Public Estates Authority nor the Philippine Reclamation Authority, and much less, the City of Manila can validly assert their respective legal authority over the project even if it entails land reclamation,” he said.

Enrile said the land to be reclaimed would not be alienated, that is, ownership would not be transferred from the state.

He said city hall can only step in if the reclamation project would have any harmful or hazardous health, sanitation and environmental effects on the city and its residents.

The statement did not indicate why Enrile was stepping into the issue. His staff, who said the senator was at the eye doctor when the Inquirer called, would not comment.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakin...gels-for-ICTSI

[hakz2007]

Coast Guard: Billion thanks for budget hike

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has sent “one billion thanks” to President Benigno Aquino III for setting aside close to P3 billion as the 2011 budget of what the PCG commandant acknowledged as “one of the world’s most over-challenged coast guards.”

Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo, PCG chief, said the P1-billion increase in the agency’s budget (from P2 billion this year) was a “big boost” to the Coast Guard.

With increased funding, the Coast Guard, now attached to the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC), is “in a better position to guard the country’s many coasts,” Tamayo said.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a higher budget for the DOTC, including the Coast Guard.

A huge chunk of the Coast Guard’s 2011 budget will go to salaries, recruitment of 500 additional men and the purchase of at least two helicopters, according to Lt. Commander Arman Balilo.

The Coast Guard plans to acquire a total of seven new helicopters.

The Coast Guard “has ships where these helicopters can land,” said Tamayo.

It also allocated P376.5 million for the installation of an undisclosed number of lighthouses in remote fishing villages nationwide.

The Coast Guard also plans to put up a buoy base in Romblon and Cebu and navigational aids in the vicinity of the San Juanico Strait in Leyte.

Early this year, the agency said it needed at least P733.02 million for its personnel and fleet expansion programs.

The Philippines has over 36,000 kilometers of coastline and thousands of coastal communities.

“About 90 percent of our domestic trade is being transported by commercial vessels. The country is also visited by at least 20 typhoons each year,” Tamayo said.

But he expressed confidence that the agency “can grow significantly during the next few years.”

“I’m optimistic that the Coast Guard will continue to grow (under the Aquino administration),” he said. “Perhaps, this is the time for our new government to be more maritime-minded.”

Earlier in an interview, Tamayo urged the Aquino administration to “look more sea-wide,” saying the country has the “third or fourth longest coastline in the world.”

“We have to have a strong Coast Guard. Otherwise, we will lose a lot of our natural wealth,” he said.

In the last 10 years, the Coast Guard has acquired only seven search-and-rescue vessels, two of which came from the Australian government.

The command has “only 20 credible ships, meaning, these are relatively modern vessels.”

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquire...or-budget-hike

[hakz2007]

Spanish galleon to dock in Cebu port, then Bohol

A replica of the 17th century galleon used by Spain for trade named the Andalucia Galleon is scheduled to visit Cebu this Wednesday, Oct. 13.

The galleon, which serves as a floating museum, will stay in Cebu for four to five days, said Elizabeth Francia, chief of staff of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia.

Francia said the galleon will dock at Pier 1near the Malacañang sa Sugbo.

The vessel will be reserved for meetings with local officials on the first day of its visit and will be open to the public on the second day.

Francia said the Capitol still has to coordinate with Cebu City Hall in setting up a waiting area near the docks since the galleon could only allow 25 visitors aboard at a time.

The galleon is open to visitors from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. A two-hour traditional siesta will be observed and visiting hours resume at 4 p.m. and end at 8 p.m.

Galleon engineers also plan to visit Cebu's northern and southern parts but they still have to inspect the Danao and Santander ports.

The Andalucia galleon will then sail to Bohol province. Its visit coincides with the observance of the first international Dia Del Galeon Festival.

The festival is held every Oct. 8 in commemoration of the galleon trade between the Philippines and Mexico between 1565 and 1815.

At least 100 youths from various parts in the country arrived in Cebu yesterday as part of the Viaje del Galeon activity.

They were briefed by local officials on Cebu's history and cultural heritage. A motorcade brought the image of Our Lady of La Paz-Antipolo to the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral for a Mass. A welcome dinner was held at For San Pedro hosted by City Hall.

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/ceb...ort-then-Bohol

[hakz2007]

MANILA, PHILIPPINES (September 4, 2010) – USS George Washington (CVN 73) Commanding Officer Capt. David A. Lausman conducts a news conference with Manila media personnel to discuss GW’s four day port visit in the Philippines. George Washington, the Navy’s only full-time forward-deployed aircraft carrier, is currently visiting the port of Manila, Philippines to promote peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, demonstrating commitment to regional partners and foster growing relationships. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class David A. Cox/Released)

image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr



by Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet

[hakz2007]

BOI approves P113.6-M shipping project

MANILA, Oct. 30 (PNA) -- The Board of Investments has approved the application of SMC Shipping and Lighterage Corporation (SMCSLC) as a new domestic shipping operator.

It applied for a pioneer status with a project cost of Php 113.6 million.

The project’s home port will be located in Sto Tomas, La Union.

The project involves the acquisition by SMCSLC of a brand new (7,800 MT) non-propelled barge named “MV Katarungan 2” built in China in January 2010.

The vessel will be acquired from Inte Marine PTE. Ltd. of Singapore and will be used for hauling and transporting mineral products (i.e. coal, gypsum, etc.) of various clients within the Philippines.

The proposed clients include Saturn Cement Corporation, Holcim Philippines, Northern Cement Corporation, PNOC Exploration Corporation and San Miguel Group of Companies.

The Maritime Industry Authority favorably endorsed the project to the BOI. M/V Katarungan 2 will start operations in November 2010, and will be undergoing sea worthiness test by the Maritime Industry Authority upon delivery. The project will generate seven new jobs.

This is the firm’s eight (8th) project applied for BOI registration. The main stockholders are San Miguel Corporation (70 percent) and Kadiwa Tranport Corporation (30 percent).

http://positivenewsmedia.net/am2/pub..._project.shtml

[hakz2007]

Ports authority to develop new monitoring system for passengers

MANILA, Jan. 21 (PIA) -- The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) is set to develop a passenger boarding monitoring and control system (PBMCS) to ensure the safety of all passengers.

According to PPA general manager Juan Sta. Ana, the agency has been tasked to have a fully operational system before May 1 of this year, or during the peak of the summer vacation.

He said this is in line with the PPA's target of having zero maritime accident.

Helping the PPA in this program are the Maritime Industry Authority, Philippine Coast Guard, and Office of Transport Security.

Sta. Ana explained that PBMCS will greatly help in the provision of a safe and reliable transport system.

He said that this is consistent with the mandate of the port agency to provide the sea traveling public with more efficient, appropriate, and modern port facilities and equipment.

“It has been observed that most of the sea tragedies that happened in the past were, more often than not, due to overloading of the vessels of either passengers or cargoes or even both," the PPA chief said.

He added that PBMCS is necessary, in addition to the facilities and amenities like the CCTV and adequate X-ray machines that are in place in the passenger terminal buildings in the ports and the mandatory implementation of the weighbridges, to ensure the safety and security of the passengers, and that the vessel will carry only its corresponding capacity load limits.

Aside from this, the PPA and other maritime partners are also developing an electronic ticketing system which aims to reduce incidents of passenger overloading and improper stowage/inaccurate recording of weight of cargoes due to inaccurate information and statistics.

"The proposed Electronic Ticketing System will provide accurate data and information and statistics on passengers as well as on cargo throughput manifests... thus ensuring ship balance and safe travel," he said. (PIA-NCR/jerome carlo r. paunan)

http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=1&t=1&id=12666

[hakz2007]

SMC logistics hub to rise at North harbor

The San Miguel Group plans to put up a logistics hub, to include an oil depot for Petron, in the North Harbor following its acquisition of a 35 stake in Manila North Harbour Port Inc. (MNHPI).

The San Miguel hub will be accommodated in the MNHPI’s redevelopment plant of North Harbor under its contract with the Philippine Ports Authority.

The San Miguel Group’s entry into MNHPI via Petron was announced Monday. Harbour Centre Port Terminals Inc. will retain a 65 percent stake.

The centralized and integrated logistics complex, estimated to cost P20 billion, will have a grains terminal and ship handling and warehousing facilities for the distribution requirement of the San Miguel Group.

An oil island will host the depot of Petron after the eventual close down of the Pandacan depot.

HCPTI has also offered the site to Pilipinas Shell and Chevron Corp. (Caltex).

HCPTI was willing to invest the required $200 million for the oil island if all three oil majors agree to relocate.

In 2008, Petron tapped technical experts from Singapore for an initial study on the oil island’s feasibility.

The Pandacan depot services about 50 percent of the country’s total demand for oil or about 1,800 retail stations in Metro Manila and outlying provinces.

About 70 percent of the shipping industry’s fuel requirements are also sourced from the Pandacan depot.

The Pandacan depot is expected to be closed down eventually because of the hazards it poses to the surrounding communities.

MNHPI is expected to present today before the PPA board the master plan for the development of North Harbor, according to PPA assistant general manager Raul Santos.

Upon submission and approval of the conceptual master plan, the preparation of detailed engineering design for the phase 1 or the development of a container terminal will follow. The design is targeted to be completed by end April 2011.

The first phase of the modernization involves the redesign of the 10 piers into a three terminal port with much wider berths that would enable the port to up its rate of handling containers from the 5 to 28 containers per hour.

International Gateways Port Management Services Philippines Inc. has been tapped to assist in the review and preparation of the master plan.

PPA asked MNHPI to provide the time table for the extent of detailed engineering design for phase 2 and the installation schedule of crane rail and other quay crane components.

PPA wants the quay crane operational in April 2012.

The review of the master plan covers engineering concerns such as structural, geotechnical, and hydrographic surveys.

http://www.malaya.com.ph/jan05/busi10.html

[Wafer]

[hakz2007]

PPA Modernizes Cagayan de Oro's Macabalan Port

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – The Macabalan port will get a P400-million upgrade this year as part of the Philippine Ports Authority´s aim to meet international port facility and service standards for 10 key ports by the end of 2011.

During a press conference hosted Thursday, June 3 by Rep. Rufus B. Rodriguez (2nd District, Cagayan de Oro) at the PPA Conference Room in the port area, Necitas G. Layola, Jr., Cagayan de Oro port manager, identified the following priority projects approved by Juan C. Sta. Ana, PPA general manager: construction of a new passenger terminal building (P250-million); paving of newly completed back-up area (P71.269-M) and construction of RoRo berthing facilities and berthing dolphins (P50-M).

More:http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/237928

North Harbor refurbishment set to begin

The modernization of the Manila North Harbor may finally begin more than a year since the port had been turned over to its private concessionaire.

Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) assistant general manager Raul Santos said that plans for the refurbishment of the facility had been drawn up by Manila North Harbour Port Inc. (MNHPI), owned by the Romero family, and would be presented to the PPA board before the end of the week.

Once the master plan is approved, the MNHPI may begin to upgrade North Harbor, the country’s busiest port.

More: http://business.inquirer.net/3143/no...t-set-to-begin

[hakz2007]

US sets up $26-M nuke detector at Port of Manila

Stressing the need to prevent nuclear proliferation and smuggling of radioactive materials worldwide, the United States has set up a $26-million (about P1.1 billion) specialized nuclear radiation detection facility at the Port of Manila, the country’s premier trade gateway.

US Ambassador to the Philippines Harry Thomas Jr. and Science and Technology Secretary Mario Montejo on Tuesday formally inaugurated the facility at the Manila International Container Terminal.

The facility is part of the Megaports Initiative project of the US Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration.

More: http://technology.inquirer.net/4129/...ort-of-manila/

[hakz2007]

Sual To Open Int'l Seaport

LINGAYEN, Philippines — Anticipation for the opening of the Sual International Seaport in this province remains high as the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) reported Sunday that the project is now 32 percent complete and may be done before the end of the year.

PPA Regional Director Silverio Mangaoang said that as soon as Phase I of the seaport project is fully constructed, it can already open and cater to small vessels.

Read more

[AmihanSSC]

Nice Thread

[AmihanSSC]

Originally Posted by hakz2007

MANILA, PHILIPPINES (September 4, 2010) – USS George Washington (CVN 73) Commanding Officer Capt. David A. Lausman conducts a news conference with Manila media personnel to discuss GW’s four day port visit in the Philippines. George Washington, the Navy’s only full-time forward-deployed aircraft carrier, is currently visiting the port of Manila, Philippines to promote peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, demonstrating commitment to regional partners and foster growing relationships. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class David A. Cox/Released)

image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr



by Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet

Bumisita pala sila Uli

[saintm]

P11.8-B RoRo Scrapped

By KRIS BAYOS
April 3, 2012, 7:07pm
MANILA, Philippines - The government has decided to scrap the P11.8-billion Greater Maritime Access (GMA) roll-on, roll-off (RoRo) port project of the previous administration and agreed to pay the French contractor on a quantum meruit basis. Transportation Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II said the government will only pay French firm Eiffel Matiere the price of the steel pipes that it had delivered to the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) by virtue of quantum meruit – a legal term which means “as much as he deserves” and is often used as a basis to continue a service without an agreement or contract.

Under the previous administration, the government had already paid a down payment of 22 million euros, or 15 percent of the total project cost, to Eiffel Matiere, which in turn manufactured 50 percent of the steel pipes needed for the 70 modular ports envisioned to be constructed under the GMA RoRo port project. The Eiffel Matiere was scheduled to deliver the remaining steel pipe piles, movable ramps, and uni-bridge systems that comprise most of the materials to build the modular ports but it was deferred when Roxas replaced resigned DoTC Secretary Jose “Ping” de Jesus.

Upon his assumption to office, Roxas had the GMA RoRo ports project under review and eventually recommended the cancellation of the project after being found to be “overpriced.”

“The project is cancelled. What will be paid for are only those that were delivered. After payment is done, (our contractual obligation) is over,” Roxas said. Even if the GMA RoRo ports will no longer be constructed, Roxas said the government can still make use of the steel pipes or sell them. “The DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways)

and PPA can use some of the steel pipes and the private sector has also expressed interest to buy some if government intends to sell. In fact, there are already some bidders,” he added.

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/356228...-roro-scrapped