Sri Lanka to acquire Pakistani shipping services: Michael

Sri Lanka is to sign an agreement with Pakistan, next month, to acquire the country's national shipping line's services for its all seaborne trade, said Ports and Shipping Minister, Kamran Michael. "Sri Lankan government has formally approached the government to sign an agreement for acquiring Pakistan's shipping services for its seaborne trade," he said at an informal meeting with newsmen on Thursday night at his resident.
A ministerial delegation is scheduled to visit Sri Lanka, next month, to hold talks with Sri Lankan counterparts to strike the deal, he said, adding that "the agreement will help the national shipping line increase its operations and revenues". Talking about coal supplies from Karachi port to power generation plants, he said the ministry is considering hiring the railways services, which are about one third cheaper compared to the road transportation cost. At present, trucks are hired to transport coal to the cement manufacturing units, which are expensive and in case of strikes or law and order situation all the supplies come to a halt, he stated.
He said the harbours have their innate rail tracks to directly supply the commodity to its destinations which will also help the country's railways and other ancillary departments and businesses. "Three berths at east wharf of Karachi port have already been allocated for coal supplies to the proposed power plants," he said, adding that "the port authorities will ensure environmental protection during the coal handling". He said the ministry is also planning to establish big coal storage at the port to improve its clinker handling capacity. He said the port has a bigger depth to allow berthing of a ship between 55, 000 to 60,000 metric tons. He also proposed inclusion of clinker carriers into the existing fleet of Pakistan's national shipping line to widen its operations and facilitate the dust coal supplies to the power plants.
"Pakistan National Shipping Corporation's [PNSC] business is growing well and the government has tendered for acquisition of two oil tankers to expand its fleet," said Michael, adding that the coal shipments by the PNSC will make supplies to plants viable and worriless. He said the government is also planning to set up another coal terminal at Port Bin Qasim, as he anticipates the country's future power generation will largely be indebted to clinker.