Container congestion at ports being eased off

PETALING JAYA: Container congestion at three major ports in Malaysia has been rapidly cleared since Friday (March 27), says Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong.

The Transport Minister said Port Klang would have reduced its congestion from nearly 100% to an expected 40% by Sunday (March 29).

“In Penang Port, 1,871 containers have been cleared out of a total of 3,000, whereas in Johor Port, 1,700 containers have been moved out of 7,500.

“The port of Tanjung Pelepas has also been given the green light to move containers out to allow continuing export and import activities, ” he posted on Saturday (March 28).

Owing to the movement control order (MCO) and social distancing, Dr Wee had a briefing via video-conference with officers from the Port Klang Authority and port operators on the ongoing process to clear the ports.

He said the cleared congestion meant a lot to ensure the smooth flow of essential goods for Malaysians, alleviating their pressures in getting needed items.

“Our economy’s robustness will depend on this, more so during the MCO period, ” he added.

Also present at the video-conference were representatives from the Shipping Association Malaysia, Selangor Freight Forwarders and Logistics Association, Association of Malaysian Hauliers and the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM).

Dr Wee, who is also MCA president and Ayer Hitam MP, thanked the port operators and companies for expediting the process, working round the clock from Friday to Sunday, to ensure “the flow of goods to our communities is not affected”.

He added that the ministry will share its standard operating procedure (SOP) on the port clearing process to all ports owned by state governments to ensure low congestion.

“I am confident that these measures will do much to ensure the efficient delivery of essential goods imported for Malaysians during the MCO period, ” he said.

Dr Wee added that he had ordered a full report with recommendations from port operators on how to move goods out quickly during the MCO and to prevent high container congestion moving forward.