Influence of Mega Container Ships on Functioning of Ports: A Study of South Asia Pakistan Terminal

Abstract

Consequent upon induction of mega container ships, the operational requirements of container terminals have significantly increased stressing on essential alterations in their design, infrastructure, equipment and processes. Our focus is on the effect of mega ship operations on functioning of the recently developed South Asia Pakistan Terminal (SAPT), in Karachi port logistics system with regard to its capacity to manage the movement of import containers. Descriptive analysis method has been used to examine the container terminal processes and evaluate the container management procedures in diverse situations, which differ in function due to call magnitude of mega container vessels. The ship turnaround time, berth occupancy percentage, ship waiting time at anchor, Containers handled at the terminal compared to ship’s carrying capacity, berthing constraints and container dwell time have been studied, with an aim to identify weak areas for optimization. The outcomes exhibit that this purpose can be achieved by relocating the containers to a nearby container storage area, better container management by efficient use of terminal resources, and by permitting greater dwell time for outbound containers.