On August 31, 2012, Cai Lan International Container Terminal (CICT) welcomed the first vessel call of Mediterranean Shipping Line, S.A., to discharge and load about 2,000 containers. The 2,020 TEU container vessel, “MSC Pylos,” is one of the three vessels running on MSC’s Tongking Service (Cai Lan – Quy Nhon – Ho Chi Minh – Hong Kong – Shantou – Hong Kong – Cai Lan) which will be calling weekly at CICT.
Patrick Avice, the general director of CICT, said, “We are very happy to receive the first vessel call from Mediterranean Shipping Line, S.A to mark the opening of CICT. Starting August 1, 2012, CICT is able to accommodate 3000 – 4,000 TEU container vessels and other types of vessels up to 50,000 DWT fully-loaded. We will strive to provide excellent service for our customers with high production.”
CICT is located along the left shore of the Hon Gai – Cai Lan channel in the territory of Bai Chay ward, Ha Long city, Quang Ninh province, in the North of Vietnam. It is the closest container terminal by road and railways to the Great Mekong subregion, which includes Southwest China markets with a population base of more than 400 million people. CICT is approximately 90 kms from Bac Ninh province and 150 kms from Noi Bai airport.
The construction of berths 2, 3 & 4 of CICT began in December 2010, and the terminal celebrated its soft opening on August 1, 2012. CICT has 2 berths available with 387m of quay length, 9 hectares of container yard, 4 Post-Panamax Ship to Shore cranes, 12 Rubber Tyred Gantry Cranes, 3 Reach Stackers, 4 Side Picks, and 28 Terminal Tractors with a current terminal capacity of 260,000 TEUs.
When construction is completed, expected in December 2012, CICT will have a total of 594m of berth, 18.1 hectares of container yard, and a terminal capacity of 520,000 TEUs. CICT has the capability to expand the container yard and invest in more equipment in order to reach full capacity of 1.2 million TEUs.
CICT offers a significant economic advantage to its shipping line customers vs. Hai Phong Port, CICT’s main competitor in North Vietnam. Hai Phong Port, with only 5.7m of draft, can only accommodate 600-1,000 TEU vessels while CICT, with its 10m of draft, is able to accommodate 3,000 – 4,000 TEU vessels, resulting in a substantial operation cost advantage to shipping lines calling CICT with larger vessels.
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About CICT
CICT is a joint venture company between SSA Holdings International – Vietnam, Inc., a subsidiary of the American company – Carrix, Inc., and Cai Lan Port Investment Company, whose majority shareholders are Vinalines, the Vietnam National Shipping Lines, and Quang Ninh Port.
