Port chiefs start CT11 planning process
WITH the fate of container Terminal 9 still up in the air, the Port Development Board (PDB) yesterday announced it was time to start planning container Terminal 11 (CT11).
PDB chairman John Gray, speaking after a board meeting, said growth of container traffic over the past five years showed that CT11 would be needed by early 1998, so initial planning should start now.
A firm decision on the timing of CT11 would become clearer once the biannual review of Hongkong's port cargo forecasts became available later this year, said Mr Gray, who is also chairman of Hongkong Bank.
The board has directed its secretariat to start work on the review soon.
Mr Gray also said the PDB had identified area 16 in Tuen Mun as a short-term container handling site for mid-stream operators.
He said that with back-up land for mid-stream handling operations becoming scarce, the site was essential for Hongkong to cope with the huge increase in container throughput.
He warned that failure to secure the site - at least temporarily pending provision of a permanent site - would lead to economic losses for the community as a whole.
