Mekong Delta needs logistics investment: officials

A trade representative has called for the construction of more deep-water ports in the Mekong River Delta to save money and time for seafood exporters.
Mekong Delta needs logistics investment: officials ảnh 1The situation of being stuck in ports and overloading at some key ports in the South East region takes place regularly, creating conditions for shipping enterprises to increase service charges. (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - A trade representative has called for the construction ofmore deep-water ports in the Mekong River Delta to save money and time forseafood exporters.

Nguyen HoaiNam, Deputy General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of SeafoodExporters and Producers (VASEP), said the move would allow firms todirectly export their goods.

Most ofthe Mekong Delta's export turnover is made up of rice and processed seafoodproducts. Every year, the region's transportation demand for export goods isabout 17-18 million tonnes. However, 70 percent of export products have to betransferred to major ports in HCM City and Cai Mep port (Ba Ria - Vung Tau province),increasing transportation by 10-40 percent depending on the route.

Thissituation leads to frequent overloads on the connecting routes from HCM City toMekong Delta provinces. In addition, transport service quality is poor, costsare high and there is a lack of links between different modes oftransport.

As one ofthe largest frozen shrimp exporters in the world, Minh Phu Seafood Joint StockCompany annually exports about 6,700-7,000 shrimp containers with a turnover of750 - 850 million USD.

Chu VanAn, Deputy General Director of Minh Phu Seafood, said if there was a moresuitable logistics service, goods could be exported directly from the MekongDelta and businesses could save 30-40 percent of their costs, which wouldincrease the competitiveness of agricultural products.

Focusedinvestment in regional transport infrastructure would help tackle theproblem, with waterways investment the best option due to the area's terrain.

Arepresentative of Ca Mau province's Transport Departmenturged prioritising investment in inland waterways that are connectedwith road traffic to enhance transport capacity throughout the region, andto exploit the waterway system linking HCM City with other provinces and citiesin the region.

TheMinistry of Transport said that it will study and implement a dredging projectand renovate Khai Doc Phu Hien canal connecting the Tien and Hau rivers toshorten the transport distance between Can Tho port and the seaport in thesoutheast.

Theministry also plans to upgrade inland waterway routes such as HCM City to KienLuong and HCM City to Ca Mau. It will also focus on improving thetransportation infrastructure system, reducing congestion on main waterways andcutting the cost of transporting goods from manufacturers to consumers,Minister of Transport Nguyen Van The said.

Accordingto Nam, there is a lack of seaports in the delta, especially deep-waterports capable of handling export container ships.

Meanwhile,goods being stuck at ports and overloads at some key ports in thesoutheast region occur regularly, allowing shipping enterprises toincrease service charges and wasting businesses' warehouse costs and time.

An Giangprovince is a big exporter and processor of seafood, but difficulties intransport infrastructure have affected the development of enterprises.

As a unitspecialising in raising and processing tra fish and basa fish for export, NguyenAnh Thu, Deputy General Director of An My Fish Joint Stock Company, saidthe province's transport system lacks synchronisation. This hascaused  difficulties and increased costs for businesses as goods cannot betransported by container trucks but must be carried by small trucks.

It isforecast that the transportation demand for the region's rice by 2020 willbe about 10.2 million tonnes and aquaculture output will be about 2.42million tonnes.

Thisshows the logistics market of the Mekong Delta has potential to develop andattract investors, according to Nguyen Minh Toai, Director of Can Tho city’sDepartment of Industry and Trade.

He saiddeveloping logistics services and building a regional level logisticscentre was an urgent need.

To meetdemand for import and export of regional goods, the Ministry of Transport asksthe Prime Minister for approval to adjust planning for Soc Trang and Tran Deseaports to seek investment and form a gateway seaport to receivevessels of up to 100,000 tonnes.

Besides,the ministry proposed the Government and the National Assembly approve theallocation of capital to upgrade the second phase of Cho Gao canal and completeinvestment procedures for the southern region waterways andtransport logistics corridor project with loans from the World Bank.-VNS/VNA
VNA

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