With assistance from Japan, the government is planning to build a new container seaport in Preah Sihanouk province, Minister of Public Works and Transport Sun Chanthol revealed on Friday.
Speaking at a press conference, he said a 14.5m deep port will soon be built in the southern province with the financial assistance of the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (Jica).
“The container terminal will service about 93 per cent of all large vessels travelling in the Asia-Pacific region.
“We will be able to ship directly without having to stop at Singapore or Hong Kong,” he said.
The ministry’s General Directorate of Logistics director Chheang Pich told The Post that the project is now underway after Jica recently completed the study.
“The terminal will facilitate import and export activities in the region and reduce costs,” he said.
Sihanoukville Autonomous Port (PAS) director-general Lou Kim Chhun could not be reached on Sunday.
In a previous interview, he said the new port will cost around $203 million.
Cambodia Freight Forwarders Association president Sin Chanthy said on Sunday that the upcoming port will expand the container handling capacity in the province.
“It is good news for the shipping sector. The new port will reduce traffic congestion at PAS and will help increase revenue for the government,” he said.
Chanthol said there is another port project in the pipeline. Although the study for this third port in the province has not concluded, the minister was able to confirm that it will be 17m deep.
“This terminal will allow us to conduct direct shipment to the US,” he said.
A ministry report said PAS’ revenue reached $80 million last year, an increase of 17.5 per cent year-on-year.
The report said the number of containers handled at the port increased by 17 per cent, reaching a total of 633,099 twenty-foot equivalent units by the end of last year.
Total tonnage handled by the port increased by 22.6 per cent, reaching more than 6.5 million tonnes, while the total number of vessels passing through rose by 15.5 per cent to 1,661.
