Chu Lai Port belonging to THACO Group’s Trường Hải International Logistics Limited Liability Company. Photo courtesy of the company

QUẢNG NAM — A new export gateway for the central and Central Highlands regions, Chu Lai Port belonging to THACO Group’s Trường Hải International Logistics Limited Liability Company (THILOGI) has improved its entire service chain to facilitate transport of bulk cargo.

The Asia Creative Energy JSC recently exported a large shipment of wood pellets to Japan through the port, and had more than 11,000 tonnes loaded onto the ship within 24 hours. 

The company has exported 130,000 tonnes of bulk cargo through the port this year.

Nguyễn Nhật Tiến, director of Asia Creative Energy, said the entire process of registration, scheduling, loading, and unloading at the port is quick, helping save costs.

Phan Văn Kỳ, director of Chu Lai Port, said: “In recent years the volume of bulk cargo imported and exported through the port has increased sharply. On average, we receive 35-40 ships a month with more than 90,000 tonnes of cargo, mainly wood pellets and chips.

“Bulk cargo accounts for 30 per cent.”

Chu Lai Port provides a variety of services efficiently and so attracts major trading firms such as Asia Creative Energy, Phú Tài, Thanh Thành Đạt, Quảng Nam Paper Materials, and Laos’ Sun Paper Company.

Demand has surged over the years, and to meet it the port has invested in infrastructure and equipment to handle a wide variety of cargo such as liquids, gases, containers, non-standard large and heavy pieces, and bulk cargo of up to four million tonnes a year.

It has completed all procedures needed to expand its wharf and it would be built along with infrastructure that can be upgraded to receive ships of 100,000 tonnes in future.

Besides installing equipment, it is also expanding warehouses, container yards, logistics facilities, and non-tariff areas to improve storage and handling.

THACO will work with Quảng Nam Province to develop the Cửa Lở channel to handle vessels of up to 50,000 tonnes and dredge the Kỳ Hà channel to increase its depth from 8.5m to 10m.

Chu Lai Port was built in 2012 to meet the company’s transport and shipping needs after it built the Chu Lai Open Economic Zone.

Logistics costs used to be 50 per cent in Quảng Nam, even 100 per cent, and so developing Chu Lai Port and ancillary services has significantly helped reduce them.

It has become a major logistics hub serving freight forwarding and transport of import-export goods from the central and Central Highlands regions. — VNS