APM Terminals will construct to a new container terminal in Costa Rica



The government of Costa Rica has adjudicated to the APM Terminals, terminalista enterprise of shipowning group Danish A.P. Møller-Mærsk, the activities of planning, financing, construction, management and maintenance of the new container Moin terminal Container Terminal (TCM) that it will be realized in the province of Limon. The contract of concession of the duration 33-year-old will be undersigned soon.

The director for the development of the activity in the continent American of APM Terminals, Paul Gallie, has announced that the investment will pile to about a billion of dollars and that the new terminal will generate about directed one thousand places of job during the phase of construction of the system and 450 during the first phase of activity of the terminal. The government of the Central American nation has specified that the investment will be of 948 million dollars, of which 648 million in the first three years for the realization of the works and the remaining purchase of distributed equipments and other 300 million in period of the concession; after such period the harbour infrastructures and equipments will pass to the State.

"This work - the President of the Republic of Costa Rica has declared, Laura Chinchilla - is fundamental and priority in the within of the national plan of development in infrastructure matter and the harbour town development plan; connecting it to the others, included the roads that compose the Corridor Caribe-Norte (Bajos de Chilamate - Vuelta Kooper, with the road for Saint Carlos), Rutums 32 Saint José-Guápiles, the oil terminal and the widening of the refinery, in their complex they will unprecedented have a positive impact and on the economy of the Atlantic region and in all the Country".

"The government - the minister of the Public works and the Transports of Costa Rica has said, Francisco Jiménez - is aware of the necessity of a new port when for those current ones of Limón-Moín he passes to 75% of the volume of the goods in import and export from Costa Rica; moreover the government has fixed the objective to increase to the exports anniversaries to 17 billion dollars within year 2014 and this cannot be reached without investments in infrastructures". "With the realization of others works - he has added - the government intends to do so as that the port of Moín allows with Costa Rica to place to the first place in terms of ability and quality of the service in the Caribbean and between the first 20 to the world".

The representatives of the Central American executive have explained that the government has made sure to make so that the new terminal can be competitive inducing the concessionaire to reduce the rate of handling of the container from 246 dollars to 223 dollars. The ministry of the Public works and the Transports has specified that in the 2008 cost in order to enliven a container in export from Costa Rica it has been pairs to 1.190 dollars regarding 729 dollars to Panama hat and 456 dollars to Singapore.

The minister has emphasized that to the new terminal they will be able to land portacontainer of the ability until 9.000 teu respect to a current ability to Puerto Limón that currently is limited to ships until 1.200 teu. "Since the voice of the transport by sea - it has found Francisco Jiménez - represents 80% of the operating costs, if ships with a advanced cargo ability four times regarding that of the ships that today climb to Puerto Limón are obvious that can be received the cost for an exporter or an importer will diminish". According to the forecasts, these operators will pay 38% in less regarding what currently they pay for the transport of their goods on ships of limited ability.

The project previews that in the first three years of contract APM Terminal it constructs two docks of 300 linear meters each. Within the first ten years of the contract, or to the attainment of a traffic anniversary enlivened from the terminal pairs to 1,5 million container teu, the terminalista society of group A.P. Møller-Mærsk will have to construct to a third dock also it of 300 linear meters. The third phase of the project previews that six months before 30° the year of concession, or to the attainment of a annual traffic of 2,5 million teu, must be constructed to others two docks of beyond 300 linear meters. Al term of the period, therefore, the terminal will have five docks altogether.

APM Terminal has specified that in the first phase of the project, that it will be completed in 2016 and it will demand an investment of 543 million dollars, the access channel and the basin of evolution meters will be dredged until a depth of -16, will be constructed a dam of 1,5 kilometers and will be prepared an area of storage of 40 hectares. The first phase of the terminal will be equipped with six crane of dock post-Panamax and other means of handling. To conclusion of the project, the terminal with five docks for 1,500 linear meters will occupy an area of 80 hectares, will have a dam breakwater of 2,2 kilometers and a channel of deep access -18 meters.

The ministry of Costa Rica has announced that the project has provoked the interest of other terminaliste societies between which DP World, Manzanillo International Terminal-Panama hat (joint venture between the Carrix and the families Motta and Heilbron) and Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH), but that only APM Terminals has carried to term the procedure of private licitazione for the allocation of the concession and has demonstrated the economic ability necessary in order to make itself loaded with the project.