XN000022-1996-03-27 — Page 8

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"One result of this that we are already experiencing is a rapid growth in river trade. The Pearl River is a natural highway between Hong Kong and many of the manufacturing centres in southern China. Shipping containers by river brings not only economies of scale but also avoids roads and border crossing points that are becoming increasingly congested."

He told delegates that in 1995, river trade container throughput grew by some 40 per cent to 1.3 million TEUs. By 1998 demand was forecast to rise to 2.5 million TEUS and to 3.5 million by 2011.

He added: "To cope with that growth, we are planning our first dedicated River Trade Terminal or RTT at Tuen Mun. Just two days from now the Hong Kong Government will be announcing the successful bidder for the rights to build and operate the RTT. Like our container terminals, it will be built and operated by the private sector.

"The RTT will enable us to consolidate cargoes shipped down the Pearl River. It will mean fewer vessels using the already very busy Ma Wan Channel entrance to the port.

"It is unlikely to be the last such facility. The long-term strategic plan provides for another RTT to be built just to the north of Lantau Port. This is expected to be needed because within 20 years river trade cargo movement could total 11 million TEUS a year. That is equal to our total port throughput for 1994."

Mr Clark said that Hong Kong's port planning had always been geared to providing container terminal facilities to meet forecast demand. However, political difficulties had prevented work starting on CT9 as planned. He said: "Thankfully those difficulties appear to becoming resolved; if we can start work later this year its first berth could become operational during 1998.

He told the conference that beyond CT9, detailed design work had already been completed on container terminals ten and 11. and feasibility studies on CT12 were likely to start later this year.

He explained: "We must keep building if we are to meet demand. Our overall port traffic is expected to increase at 5.4 per cent a year up to the year 2016. But, the proportion of that cargo that is containerised will grow from 55 per cent in 1994 to 60 per cent in 2016.