Monday, September 07, 2009
HPH and ICTSI eye Montevideo expansion plans
Montevideo: Either of two Asian interntional box terminal operators - Hutchison Port Holdings or ICTSI of the Philippines – could be the main beneficiary of an ambitious plan by the Uruguayan government to boost container capacity in Montevideo.
Fernando Puntigliano, president of state-owned port body ANP, has declared that Montevideo box terminal TCP should “sell up” if it is not happy with the Uruguayan government moving ahead with its plan to build a second dedicated container terminal in the Uruguayan capital.
Puntigliano told SAO that the Belgian operator Katoen Natie needs to accept the early August decision by the Uruguayan Parliament to press forward with a new USD$150M container terminal at the heart of the port of Montevideo or allow international operators to buy them out.
And another source said that Hutchison and ICTSI – as well as APMoeller Terminals – were among the favourites to bid for a second USD$150M dedicated container terminal in Montevideo, which has been winning cargo over from draught restricted Buneos Aires in recent years.
The same source indicated that Hutchison and ICTSI had also already made some inquiries into buying out TCP. ICTSI operates a container terminal in Suape (northeast Brazil) and is building up a new terminal in La Plata, south of Buenos Aires. Hutchison bought the BACTSA terminal – located in Puerto Nuevo, BA, - from ICTSI around eight years ago. [04/09/09]
