The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) said ports are not intended as storage areas for importers and other users as these facilities are primarily designed to facilitate the efficient movement of cargo.
PPA general manager Jay Santiago said the agency was coordinating with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to streamline their processes to discourage importers from using ports as storage areas or warehouses for their goods.
“We are slowly reviewing our processes in PPA and in coordination with BOC,” Santiago said.
The PPA said some importers were waiting for a month to file import entries for cargo despite these goods already unloaded at the ports. The filing of entry signals the start of processing at the BOC.
“Some importers delay the filing of the import entry since they can save on storage cost [at the ports] compared to if they store goods in private warehouses. They pay only P700 a day [per container]. For a month, that is P21,000, which is a small amount compared to the value of the shipment,” he said.
Importers have 30 days to pull out their cargo from the time these are cleared by the BOC, after which these are deemed condemned, the PPA said.
Santiago said the PPA turned over to the Department of Agriculture (DA) the list of 20 consignees who failed to pull out over 500 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of shipments of rice and other agricultural products at the Manila ports as of Sept. 30, 2024.
Santiago said the PPA in a letter dated Oct. 1, 2024 provided Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel the list of consignees on an inventory of pork, chicken and onion shipments that remained unclaimed at the ports even after BOC cleared the shipments and those which exceeded the 30-day dwell time.
He said the PPA has no jurisdiction over the consignees as its mandate is strictly focused on port management.
The PPA also directed the head of operations and engineering of Asian Terminal Inc., the terminal operator of Manila South Harbor, to report the overstaying containers to the BOC for appropriate disposition in accordance with Section 1129 of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act concerning abandoned containers.
“We believe having this information on a regular basis will help both PPA and DA identify trends, address any challenges promptly, and improve overall service delivery,” said Santiago.
