ENG-2009 — Page 320

252 Transport

Mainland ports totalled 4.4 million, and the number to and from Macao was 17.5 million in 2009.

The Port

In 2009 Hong Kong handled a total of 21.04 million 20-foot Equivalent Unit of containers (TEUs), maintaining its status as the largest container port serving southern China and one of the busiest in the world.

Some 411 270 vessels arrived in and departed from Hong Kong during the year, carrying 243 million tonnes of cargo and about 24 million passengers. Most of these passengers commuted on a highly efficient fleet of high-speed ferries, including jetfoils and catamarans, to and from Macao and ports on the Mainland, making Hong Kong a port with one of the world's largest number of high-speed craft.

Hong Kong is a modern, well equipped deep-water port serving two main types of maritime transport large ocean-going vessels from all parts of the world and smaller, coastal and river trade vessels from the Pearl River. Hong Kong is the focal point of all maritime trading activities in the region.

On an average day there are around 90 ocean-going vessels working in the port; nearly 470 river-trade vessels entering or leaving the port; and many river ferries and local craft working in, or passing through, the harbour. Ship turnaround performance is among the best in the world: container ships at terminals are routinely turned around in about 10 hours.

Port Development

Container handling facilities are a key part of the infrastructure of the logistics sector, one of the four pillar industries of Hong Kong. The nine container terminals at Kwai Chung-Tsing Yi area have 24 berths with a total handling capacity of over 19 million TEUS per year.

Competition between the container terminals and alternative modes of container handling motivates the operators to improve their efficiency and quality of service. The investment in upgrading equipment and systems in the terminals at Kwai Chung-Tsing Yi over the past few years has enabled the port to enhance its productivity, as well as to handle the world's largest container ships.

The container port is vital, not only to Hong Kong, but also to southern China, an area with robust external trade growth. Almost 70 per cent of container traffic handled by Hong Kong is related to southern China.

Strategic Planning

The 'Study on Hong Kong Port Master Plan 2020', completed in 2004, recommended a package of immediate and long-term initiatives to increase the port's competitiveness. Following its recommendations, the Government commissioned a study on port cargo forecasts, which estimated that the port's container throughput would continue to grow in the years ahead. An ecology study on a site on Northwest Lantau was also completed to assess its environmental