Barges Link Cambodia, Vietnam, U.S.

The Journal of Commerce Online
http://www.joc.com

Thomas L. Gallagher Jun 9, 2009

River route to Ho Chi Minh’s new deep-water terminal cuts transit time

Ocean carrier MOL launched river barge service from Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to bring containers via the new deep-water terminal in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, to the United States.

Freight that used to travel by truck to feeder vessels from southern Cambodia to Singapore for transshipment to line-haul vessels can now go directly to the Tan Cang Cai Mep Terminal for transfer to MOL’s container ships, cutting two to 10 days from transit time to the U.S. West Coast.

Delivery from Phnom Penh to key ports will be reduced to the following:Los Angeles, 20 days; Oakland, 24 days; Seattle, 19 days; and Vancouver, 21 days.

In addition to reduced transit times, customers will also experience cost savings in intermodal and inventory-carrying costs, MOL said.

"As the pioneers of this service, MOL management has spent a significant amount of time scrutinizing every detail to ensure seamless transport. Our service development process included actual ‘process trips’ to familiarize ourselves with customs and operations procedures," said Richard Hiller, vice president trans-Pacific trade, MOL (America).

Contact Thomas L. Gallagher at tgallagher@joc.com.