Cashew nuts enterprises should avoid overloaded ports

	Cashew nut segment lowers expectations for export growth
	Top export products in five months
	Cashew nut exports mostly rely on imported raw materials

Overload at Cat Lai port makes Customs clearance slow. Photo: Thu Hoa.

According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Ha Giang, the Managing Director of Maersk Vietnam Co., Ltd, at some points of the year, the volume of imported goods to Vietnam in general and Ho Chi Minh City in particular has increased while transportation systems such as wharves, docks, and barges are not sufficient to meet the requirements effectively. Especially, during the high season of cashew nuts imported to HCM City, most of the importers have requested to receive goods at Cat Lai port. Even when the mother ships carried cashew nuts unloaded at deep water ports in Cai Mep Thi Vai area, customers still requested delivery in Cat Lai port.

In comparison with the previous years, this year, Cat Lai port has expanded yards and wharf areas (Phu Huu New Port), but not enough to meet the high demand for imported goods, leading to the situation of congestion. The entrance of Cat Lai Port often encountered high levels of stockpiles. Therefore, the reception of goods from ports in Cai Mep Thi Vai is often delayed, resulting in delays in delivery of goods, causing damage in terms of time and cost for both customers and shipping companies.

According to Ms. Giang, Maersk Line has increased its direct services from West Africa to Vietnam as well as cargo transport services to meet the needs of cashew importers as soon as possible. However, the limitations mentioned above had a great impact on Maersk's service activities.

Mr. Michael Them Rasmussen, the Director General of CMA CGM Shipping Company in Vietnam also said that in the first five months of 2017, about 430,000 tons of raw cashew nuts were shipped from Africa to Vietnam. Of which, CMA CGM shipped 115,000 tons, or 26% of the volume of imports. However, due to limited logistics capacity, CMA CGM currently has approximately 1,400 TEUs in the Malaysian port of Tanjung Pelepas. In order to deal with this situation, CMA CGM is hiring more ships to transport goods from Tanjung Pelepas port to Vietnam.

In addition, in Vietnam, the overload at Cat Lai port also greatly affected the delivery progress of shipping lines. Specifically, from late May 2017, CMA CGM has shipped directly to Cai Mep Thi Vai New Port. However, a large volume of cargo is also located at Cai Mep Thi Vai New Port because the port can not carry barges to Cat Lai in time for congestion at Cat Lai in general and barges usually wait from 24 to 48 hours to have a wharf at Cat Lai. Therefore, it takes from 7 to 9 days to deliver goods by barge from Cai Mep Thi Vai port to Cat Lai.

Mr. Michael said that CMA CGM tried to persuade importers to take direct cargo from Cai Mep Thi Vai port, but Cat Lai remained the preferred destination.

From that reality, the shipping lines said that in addition to increasing the area of Cat Lai and the capacity of receiving barges at the wharf to promote the receipt of cargoes to port of Cat Lai quickly, we need to increase competitive capacity and construction of related service packages at other ports and ICDs in HCMC to attract importers and reduce pressure on Cat Lai. Along with that, there should be policies to support and encourage cashew customers to accept the goods at other ports outside the port of Cat Lai.

Cashew segment banks on higher sales in the EU The Vietnam Cashew Association has forecast exports for 2017 to rise 3 4 pct in volume and ...