Batangas International Port
| Batangas International Port | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Location | |
| Country | Philippines |
| Location | Batangas City |
| Coordinates | 13°02′43″N 121°00′24″E / 13.0452°N 121.0066°ECoordinates: 13°02′43″N 121°00′24″E / 13.0452°N 121.0066°E |
| Details | |
| Operated by | Philippine Ports Authority |
| Type of harbor | Passenger and cargo |
| Land area | 150 hectares (1,500,000 m2) |
| Statistics | |
| Vessel arrivals | 32,777 (2015) |
| Annual cargo tonnage | 2,374,980 (2015) |
| Passenger traffic | 6,346,303 (2015) |
The Batangas International Port or locally known as the Batangas Pier, is a seaport in Barangay Santa Clara, Batangas City primarily serving the Calabarzon region of the Philippines. The seaport covers an area of about 150 hectares.
It was declared as a national port in 1956. It serves as an alternate port to the Port of Manila. In the 90's it was the second biggest port in the Philippines in terms of revenue, just behind the Port of Manila.
Waters across the Verde island passage are very deep and flushed by the current of the South China Sea, resulting in strong marine currents of up to 6 knots, and occasionally choppy waters.
The Batangas Container Terminal (BTC) of the Batangas International Port is operated by listed Asian Terminals Inc. is a major trading port outside [[Metro Manila serving major industries in Southern Luzon. BCT handled over 85,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of international containers from January to July 2016. In 2015 the terminal handled 130,000 TEUs in 2015, 28.9% of its actual capacity of 450,000 TEUs.
The Port of Batangas in 2014 was only handling 12,000 TEUs or 2.7% of its actual capacity. Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) discounts in the port and docking fees at the Batangas Port attracted more foreign and local shipping firms and incentivized them for helping decongest Manila’s facilities. In 2016 it was reported that the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has proposed to transfer operations of the Port of Manila to the Batangas International Port, citing the fact that most of the domestic shipping largely comes from South of Manila, saying that ship operating costs would be relatively lower if vessels were docked in Batangas City rather than in Manila.
Other competing ports such as the Port of Subic Bay are also providing container storage services to ease congestion at the Manila ports. In August 2014, PPA reported an 85%-89% yard utilization for the MICT and Manila South Harbor.
The Batangas port is also a gateway for passengers, Roro/ferry (terminal 2) and tourist traffic. There are 3 passenger terminals located inside the port, after the toll entrance. The presence of a population of hustlers, tourist guides, and pushy unofficial port authority "helpers" targeting tourists can be a problem especially for foreign visitors who are not familiar with the organization of the terminal. The boats have tendency not to leave on time, and the poor reputation of the passenger terminal is in serious need of improvement. Some Roro ferry services also seem to consistently fail meeting maritime safety standards due to minimum ship maintenance, and chronic overload.
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