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Cambodia: Sihanoukville Port’s profit soars 220% on expansion plan
The state-owned Sihanoukville Autonomous Port (PAS) has gained rise of its profit by 218.86 percent or 7$.57 million to about $11 million in the second quarter of this year compared to $3.43 million in the same period of last year, according to a senior official of the port.
The official said in the second quarterly report released by PAS for 2022 that the stock exchange-listed port has earned approximately $22.27 million as total revenue in the April-June period of this year, an increase by $1.47 million or 6.26 percent from about $21 million in the same period of last year.
The port generates its revenues mainly from charging its clients for stevedoring, lift-on and lift-off, which accounts for nearly 50 percent and 30 percent respectively of the total revenue, while the port charge for vessel services accounts for 17.22 percent followed by storage in the warehouse and yard, according to the report.
The report pointed out that other revenues include transportation, passenger vessel, special economic zone, rental fee and other revenues. All of these revenues account for less than one percent of the total revenue, except storage in warehouse and yard at the port which is the sole international deep-sea port on a land area of approximately 125 hectares along the coastal line of Cambodia.
Lou Kimchhun, Chairman and CEO of PAS, said container cargoes, cargo throughput and an increase in unrealised foreign exchange gain – Japanese Yen – were the key factors that contributed to the sharp rise of the port’s comprehensive income for the second quarter of this year.
“[The port] is going to continue its efforts to improve the business and service operations and to achieve the best results for the benefit of our shareholders. [It] has strengthened the work efficiency and built additional infrastructure to meet the increasing demand of customers and growing economy,” said Kimchhun.
PAS spent about $18.31 million on salaries, wages, consumable supplies, depreciation, amortisation, repairs, maintenance and other expenses in the second quarter of this year, which has increased by about 20 percent from around $15.26 million in the same period of last year, according to the figures indicated in the report.
PAS has been implementing the construction of a new Container Terminal in phase 1 with 350 metre in length by 14.5 metre depth, including the installation of three units of quality controls, nine units of rubber-tyred gantries, two units of empty reach stackers, sixteen units of container trucks and one set of auto container terminal management system.
The new container terminal will allow larger container vessels in the region calling to PAS which would solve the water depth constraints for the port. Also, the Ocean Freight Cost would be similar to neighbouring countries and the region which would contribute to trade facilitation and the development of Cambodian socio-economy.
The project is expected to be completed by mid-2025, and container handling capacity will reach 1,150,000 TEUs in one year when this new container terminal is launched for operation in the upcoming year of 2025.
Japan-financed Port Electronic Data Interchange (Port EDI) system made a soft launch to put an end to paper-based procedures for private sector vessels entrance into and exit out of PAS and Phnom Penh Autonomous Port to improve effectiveness, efficiency, transparency and cost-saving.
Japanese Ambassador Mikami said the bilateral cooperation between Cambodia and Japan has been expanded to many sectors since a joint statement issued by Prime Minister Hun Sen and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during the latter’s visit to Cambodia in March this year to acknowledge that the cooperation between Cambodia and Japan has reached the highest level in history.
The ambassador added that the joint statement points out that the two countries shall cooperate with each other at the maximum level to develop the SHV port to become a major port for Cambodia and Mekong region and Japan has granted a $383.22 million loan to Cambodia to expand and modernise PAS through the exchange of notes signed by Prak Sokhonn, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and Hayashi Yoshimasa, Foreign Minister of Japan early August this year.
Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501142785/sihanoukville-ports-profit-soars-220-on-expansion-plan/