TOPLINE Contrary to the serious crisis of lack of shipping containers in the world, causing transportation costs to skyrocket, thousands of containers are still lying at the port in Vietnam for years but cannot be handled.
KEY POINTS
- As of June 15, 2021, the number of backlogged goods in the area of customs operations amounted to 6,665 containers. The quantity of backlogged goods is mainly concentrated in Ba Ria – Vung Tau, Hai Phong, and Ho Chi Minh City.
- Before the complicated development of the Covid-19 epidemic, the General Department of Customs has issued documents to guide Customs Departments of provinces and cities to focus on reviewing the list of backlogged goods and classifying to promptly guide the handling of each specific case.
ARTICLE
More than 6,600 containers are backlogged
A representative of the Customs Management Supervision and Administration Department (General Department of Customs said), as of June 15, 2021, the number of backlogged goods in the area of customs operations amounted to 6,665 containers. The quantity of backlogged goods is mainly concentrated in Ba Ria – Vung Tau, Hai Phong, and Ho Chi Minh City.
Specifically, by the end of July 21, 2021, the Hai Phong area has 2,708 backlogged containers. Statistics show that the seaports and warehouses with the largest amount of containers in stock include: ICD Nam Hai (more than 1,200 containers), Tan Vu Port Branch, Hai Phong Port Joint Stock Company (334 containers), Dinh Vu Port (257 containers). ), Dinh Vu Petroleum Service Port Joint Stock Company (265 containers), Green Port Service One Member Company Limited (134 containers), etc.
In the southern region, as of July 23, Tan Cang – Cat Lai port has a total of more than 2,160 containers backlogged with a period of over 90 days. In which, the volume of scrap containers is 380 containers, the number of non-scrap containers is more than 1,700 containers.
As for Tan Cang – Cai Mep, the backlog of scrap containers is more than 1,100 containers. Tan Cang – Hiep Phuoc port currently has more than 1,200 containers of scrap backlogged. In which, 163 and 1200 respectively are the number of containers leftover 90 days at these two ports. These are all scrap goods transferred from Cat Lai port to storage.
By the end of June 2021, customs authorities have coordinated to process and release more than 1,100 containers with the number of containers handled for re-export of more than 500 containers.
Checking the scrap import license before unloading from the ship
Although the handling of scrap containers is still maintained, however, in the context of the complicated development of the COVID-19 epidemic, it is difficult to organize a council to handle backlogged goods due to the inability to gather large numbers of people. In addition, the social distancing directives of localities have also slowed down the processing of backlogged goods and prolonged the processing time of backlogged goods.
To overcome this, the General Department of Customs has issued documents guiding the Customs Departments of provinces and cities to focus on reviewing the list of backlogged goods and classifying them to promptly guide the handling of each specific case.
According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuong, Deputy Head of the Department of Transportation and Maritime Services (VN Maritime Administration), over the past time, the port authorities have implemented instructions for shipping lines and agents to declare specific information: Bill of lading, certificate of environmental assurance, escrow paper for customs declaration before goods arrive at the port for scrap import. The objective is not to allow the unloading of waste/scrap that is not eligible for import to the warehouse or port yard.
Ms. Thuong added that in the coming time, the Vietnam Maritime Administration will continue to ask the port authorities directly under it to study and propose measures to coerce, handle or stop the granting of permits to enter and exit Vietnamese seaports for airlines. ships transporting goods causing environmental pollution into Vietnamese seaports.
At the same time, request shipping lines to report information on imported goods owners, shippers’ agents, report on the current status, causes of backlogs at seaports, and propose plans for exemption or reduction. prices for storage of containers and yards for imported containers whose owners have been cleared from customs.
Minh Ngo
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