CAMBODIA
The Phnom Penh Post-June 26
State-owned Sihanoukville Autonomous Port (PAS) launched its multipurpose terminal on Monday, which was praised by a government official as a way for the country to export faster and more efficiently.
The $74 million Japan-backed terminal will provide an additional 330 meters for ship docking and is able to accommodate larger vessels with its 13.5-metre depth, according to the Minister for Public Works and Transportation, Sun Chanthol.
At the inauguration, attended by Prime Minister Hun Sen, Chanthol said the terminal is a key water gateway for the country’s agricultural products to be exported to the international market.
“As it is linked to major roads and also improves port capacity, it will make Sihanoukville port play a more important role in speeding up the delivery of goods as well as boost competitiveness between Cambodia and neighboring countries,” he said.
The terminal will facilitate 70 percent of imports and exports coming through the Kingdom and is able to load shipments weighing 40,000-50,000 tons. This is more than twice the limit of the existing terminals, Chanthol said.
He said the government also plans to build a new $203 million container terminal with financial support from the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Container traffic increased 12.65 percent over the past five years, and during the first five months of this year it increased to 207,047 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) – up 20 percent compared to the same period last year.
PAS became the fifth listed firm on the Cambodia Stock Exchange (CSX) in June last year.
On Monday, its share price stood unchanged from the previous trading day at 5,160 riel ($1.27).
