Subic Bay International Terminal Corp (SBITC) and logistics service provider J-PAC Logistics recently signed a memorandum of agreement to jointly promote and market Subic port, north of Manila.
SBITC is the operator of Subic’s New Container Terminal 1 (NCT-1) while J-PAC Logistics, a Filipino-owned international company, is a cargo consolidator and logistics service provider in Clark Freeport zone.
SBITC and J-PAC agreed to endeavor to increase containerized cargo handling activities to make Subic more viable to both industrial locators and shipping lines.
“This partnership puts us a step forward in our bid to promote SBITC in the northern Luzon regions. We will continue to provide world-class services to our customers as well as follow the standard set to us by ICTSI,” SBITC president Jose Manuel De Jesus said after the signing ceremony.
“We are deeply honored to be partnering with SBITC and we look forward to helping them achieve goals while simultaneously addressing what needs to be done for our locators,” Ramon De Leon, J-Pac Logistics president, for his part, said.
The partnership will market the Subic Bay international port as the premiere trading gateway for industries in the northern Luzon regions, particularly businesses located in the freeports of Subic Bay and Clark, and the special economic zones of northern Philippine provinces such as Tarlac and Bataan.
J-PAC will include SBITC in its marketing and promotional activities with existing and potential customers. When a new customer for SBITC has been identified and targeted, a formal marketing agreement with the customer will be forged.
Currently, locators in the freeports and special economic zones in northern Luzon need more logistics infrastructure support. Most import and export cargo from the area pass Manila ports, limiting shipping possibilities. The Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) remains underutilized while the Subic port has yet to be optimized.
J-PAC Logistics has sought permission of Clark Development Corp to develop a container handling and yard facility inside Clark Special Economic Zone (CSEZ). The facility will be beneficial for shipping lines and industrial locators as it will have a container facility set-up inside the CSEZ. Instead of pulling out and returning empty containers all the way back to Manila, empty container storage will be done at an empty container depot inside Clark. This will reduce the truck’s turnaround time, resulting in faster delivery while having immediate access to an empty container inventory.
SCTEX provides better road conditions, travel time and easy access to and from Subic and Clark, because of less traffic. Lastly, a container yard in Clark will be cost effective for both shipping lines and locators. The container handling and yard facility is seen as an economic catalyst to spur business activity in the region.
Photo from http://sbma.com/
