The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) said that the volume of container cargo handled the Port of Subic between January and August nearly doubled year on year.
SBMA Chairman Roberto V. Garcia said container volume at the Port of Subic has already reached 83,000 twenty-foot equivalent units, up 93 percent of 43,000 TEUs for the same period in 2014.
Subic’s free port can help divert marine traffic from the congestion in Manila because it is set up as “one-stop shop”, he said.
He said efforts by the agency and partner locators to ensure ease in cargo processing at the Port of Subic, as well as other marketing initiatives, contributed to the rise in container volume here.
According to Roberto: " We are the only port in Luzon that has a one-stop shop, and this gives us the competitive edge. They come to our container port, go to our one-stop shop where offices of the SBMA, Customs, and the Landbank are all in one place. In just a matter of 30 minutes, their papers are already processed."
Garcia expected shipping volume this year to double last year's record of 77,000 twenty-foot equivalent units.
Seven major shipping lines now call regularly at Subic, including Maersk, APL, NYK, and SITC, according to the SBMA.