tate-owned Indonesian port operator Pelindo III has been put under pressure to reduce dwelling times for ships at the main East Java port of Tanjung Perak from eight to four days, local reports said.
In response, Pelindo III spokesman Edi Priyanto blamed the slow turnaround time on a shortage of customs officials at the port. “There are only 38 active customs-clearance personnel working at the port daily and they’re only available during office hours, despite the round-the-clock flow of goods into the port,” he was quoted as saying.
Tanjung Perak had a throughput of 2.9m teu last year. Pelindo III has invested in new cranes and trucks and will officially begin operations at its new Teluk Lamong Port in July, which is expected to ease traffic at Tanjung Perak. However Edi said the customs clearance issues must be addressed as it remains a stumbling block.
Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) chairman Sofjan Wanandi was also quoted as saying Indonesia had one of the longest turnaround times in Southeast Asia. This will be a problem as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) strives to build its ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) by 2015.
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