Batangas Port is investing P1.3 billion to build a multilevel car storage facility (MCSF) that will cater to the booming consumer demand for imported vehicles, port operator Asian Terminals Inc. (ATI) said.
ATI executive vice president Andrew Hoad, with port officials and senior officers of the Philippines’ major car manufacturers in attendance, recently spearheaded the MCSF’s groundbreaking ceremonies.
The five-story MCSF development will enable Batangas Port to handle more than 7,000 completely built car units (CBUs) at any single time.
Last year, the port handled over 200,000 CBUs, its highest car throughput in a single year, representing the majority of 2016’s car sales nationwide.
MCSF’s first phase will start operations in November this year while the second phase will be finished by mid-2018.
The MCSF is being built on a two-hectare space close to the roll-on/roll-off berths of Batangas Port, making it a strategic staging area for transporting imported vehicles to island destinations in Visayas and Mindanao via inter-island vessels.
NW Steel Industries and DCCD Engineering Corporation are constructing the facility.
Taking part in the groundbreaking ceremonies were NW Steel president Mario Montejo, Kia president Elena Domingo, Mitsubishi senior marketing manager Alexis Aspillera, Toyota senior vice president Leody Gilbuena, Philippine Ports Authority’s Batangas port manager Leopoldo Biscocho, Bureau of Customs’ Batangas collector Reynaldo Galeno, Isuzu vice president Koichi Tamura, Hyundai senior assistant vice president Jemuel Julian, Nissan general manager for TCS-Logistics Eddielyn Quiazon, and DCCD Engineering president Michael Reyes.
