Imbalance in the structure of ship categories was a major difficulty forVietnam's sea transport industry, said Head of the Marine DepartmentNguyen Nhat.
According to the department, Vietnam had about 1,700sea ships, including 28 container ships, 172 bulk carriers, over 940mixed ships, 150 oil carriers, nine liquefied gas carriers and 37passenger ships.
The figures showed that Vietnam had an abundanceof small ships, but lacked ships with high loading capacities orspecialised vessels, Nhat said.
In the last four years, thenumber of container ships worldwide increased on average 6.8 percent,but the percentage in Vietnam was just 1.1 percent.
Nhat said theimbalance put sea transport firms in tough competition, particularlyduring the economic slowdown, when they were burdened with increasedinput costs and fewer transport orders.
High logistic costs andinadequate sea port facilities also hindered the development ofVietnam's sea transport sector, Nhat added.
Vietnam had about 800logistics firms but the majority of them were small and only providedservices in Vietnam and neighbouring countries, Nhat said.
"Mostfirms don't focus enough on efficient supply chains," he said, notingthat they hardly had a separate section specialising in logisticsmanagement.
Most of the 44 sea ports in Vietnam were not designedto receive container ships and did not have proper equipment to load orunload containers, he added.
General Secretary of the VietnamShip Owners' Association, Do Xuan Quynh, said owners were sufferinglosses from sluggish operations.
They could not afford to improve their fleets and expand production, he said.
The Vietnamese fleet can currently only deal with 30 percent of the market share, and foreign shipping companies take the rest.
About 400 Vietnamese ships carry goods overseas but mostly on routes to China and Southeast Asian countries.
Quynhsaid that financial support policies such as preferential loans,reduced interest rates or reduced marine fees were needed.
Vicedirector of New Sai Gon Port Company, Ngo Minh Tuan, said that it wastime to develop logistics centres in line with industrial and economiczones.
Transport infrastructure must be developed to connect suchcentres, zones and seaports, he said, emphasising that combined effortscould help improve the competitiveness of Vietnam's sea transportindustry.
During talks between leaders of the Transport Ministry,seaport operators and shipping companies on August 5, Minister Dinh LaThang said the ministry would review seaport development planning andthe structure of ship categories.
He said the investment toimprove seaport infrastructure and links between sea transport to othertransport models would be continued.
At present, key projects areongoing, including Hai Phong's Lach Huyen International Seaport, awaterway passage for heavy vessels to the Hau River and improvedwaterway passage to the Cua Lo Port.-VNA
According to the department, Vietnam had about 1,700sea ships, including 28 container ships, 172 bulk carriers, over 940mixed ships, 150 oil carriers, nine liquefied gas carriers and 37passenger ships.
The figures showed that Vietnam had an abundanceof small ships, but lacked ships with high loading capacities orspecialised vessels, Nhat said.
In the last four years, thenumber of container ships worldwide increased on average 6.8 percent,but the percentage in Vietnam was just 1.1 percent.
Nhat said theimbalance put sea transport firms in tough competition, particularlyduring the economic slowdown, when they were burdened with increasedinput costs and fewer transport orders.
High logistic costs andinadequate sea port facilities also hindered the development ofVietnam's sea transport sector, Nhat added.
Vietnam had about 800logistics firms but the majority of them were small and only providedservices in Vietnam and neighbouring countries, Nhat said.
"Mostfirms don't focus enough on efficient supply chains," he said, notingthat they hardly had a separate section specialising in logisticsmanagement.
Most of the 44 sea ports in Vietnam were not designedto receive container ships and did not have proper equipment to load orunload containers, he added.
General Secretary of the VietnamShip Owners' Association, Do Xuan Quynh, said owners were sufferinglosses from sluggish operations.
They could not afford to improve their fleets and expand production, he said.
The Vietnamese fleet can currently only deal with 30 percent of the market share, and foreign shipping companies take the rest.
About 400 Vietnamese ships carry goods overseas but mostly on routes to China and Southeast Asian countries.
Quynhsaid that financial support policies such as preferential loans,reduced interest rates or reduced marine fees were needed.
Vicedirector of New Sai Gon Port Company, Ngo Minh Tuan, said that it wastime to develop logistics centres in line with industrial and economiczones.
Transport infrastructure must be developed to connect suchcentres, zones and seaports, he said, emphasising that combined effortscould help improve the competitiveness of Vietnam's sea transportindustry.
During talks between leaders of the Transport Ministry,seaport operators and shipping companies on August 5, Minister Dinh LaThang said the ministry would review seaport development planning andthe structure of ship categories.
He said the investment toimprove seaport infrastructure and links between sea transport to othertransport models would be continued.
At present, key projects areongoing, including Hai Phong's Lach Huyen International Seaport, awaterway passage for heavy vessels to the Hau River and improvedwaterway passage to the Cua Lo Port.-VNA
