New Priok container terminal 'hopefully' to start operations on 15 July

"Hopefully, we could begin full operation on 15 July," Pelindo II director of operations and information systems Prasetyadi said. The major port operator's former president-director Richard Lino is under investigation for corruption.

The New Priok Container Terminal I, will be the first of three new terminals planned for the overburdened port. It will be equipped with an 850m dock that can take one feeder vessel and up to two new panamax class vessels.

The new panamax vessels would allow shipments from or to Jakarta to take a direct route to other major ports across the globe, thus cutting logistical costs.

The current Tanjung Priok Port can only handle 1,500-teu feeder vessels, necessitating transshipment in Singapore or other regional  hub ports. The new facilities are expected to prompt more direct mainline calls as the New Priok Port becomes fully operational.

"We have conducted a trial run for the new terminal to synchronize all the export-import procedures and systems," Prasetyadi said.

The company ran a trial docking operation on 28 May with Sinar Sumba, a feeder ship owned by Samudera Indonesia Shipping Line, to test the infrastructure, logistics and the terminal integration with port authorities including the quarantine department and customs.

"The next test run would be 2 July. We hope that we have enough time to make adjustments if any issues arise," Prasetyadi said.

The 32-hectare container terminal is capable of handling up to 1.5m teu per year.