Port managing firm to begin operations

A COMPANY offered a 25-year contract to handle port operations in Lae and Motukea has been given the green light by the Government to start work.
The South Pacific International Container Terminal (SPICT) is a subsidiary of the International Container Terminal Services Inc based in the Philippines.
It has started operations at the Lae Tidal Basin in Morobe.
It signed a 25-year agreement with PNG Ports last July to operate terminal services at Lae port – the largest container handling facility in PNG.
A statement from the company yesterday said they had received the go-ahead to begin operations from the Government.
It will begin the transition by immediately rolling out the terminal’s new operating system Navis N4.
Christian Gonzalez, the ICTSI head of Asia-Pacific, recently said: “We know the next few weeks will be a difficult transition, particularly given the quick adoption of N4 to the working environment.
Team SPICT is however, extremely excited and committed to face the challenges of delivering such an upgrade to the way the terminal is managed.
“With the support of the local
port users and our shipping partners, we believe that the benefits of automating processes and information flow will accrue to each and every one of the ports users very quickly.”
The system and the global standard for container terminal planning and operations management are expected to quickly streamline the flow of information at Lae’s international container terminal and significantly increase seaside and landside productivity levels.
As part of its operational ramp up, SPICT will spend most of the coming months rolling out the system’s modules and orienting port users at Lae, while handling all international cargo at the tidal basin and the
dedicated second berth in Lae old wharf.
It is expected that a full and stable suite of modules will be operational and ready in time for the arrival of SPICT’s mobile harbour cranes in April.