The Sri Lanka Association of NVOCC Agents (SLANA) urged for the removal of excess regulations to revive its operating model and become a sustainable operator.
Addressing the 3rd NVOCC AGM in Colombo on Thursday, Chairperson Harsha De Silva said Sri Lanka should be in line with policies followed by other regional hub ports such as Singapore and Dubai especially when it comes to Terminal Handling Charges (THC).
De Silva however said that the inability to collect THC in Sri Lanka has put tremendous pressure on the NVOCC operating model and if changes do not occur soon it would lead to reduced interest in NVOCC s operating their containers to/from Sri Lanka in medium to long term. This will jeopardize the industry’s progress in Sri Lanka, he said. Over 50 active NVOCC principals operate container services in and out of the country giving their local agents the opportunity to compete with mainline agencies for the import and export of cargo. De Siva also said that in the last two to three years, mergers and acquisitions in the main line operator industry (MLO) has resulted in the reduction of the MLO agency offices in Sri Lanka. However, qualified and experienced shipping professionals who lose their jobs as a result of that still have the opportunity to continue their careers and utilize their skills within their membership by working for NVOCC agencies in Sri Lanka.
He also urges that the Ceylon Shipping Corporation (CSC) should restart its containerized services in the region by establishing a NVOCC operation based out of Sri Lanka and they would be happy to have the CSC among its membership. “Many of our Principals operate in the Indian Sub-Continent Region including Pakistan, Bangladesh and Maldives. Also in the Middle East - Gulf and South East Asian regions covering the Far East Ports reaching all the way to China,” De Silva said adding that during the time of war risks, NVOCCs operate to destinations that main lines avoid, giving Sri Lankan exporters a life-line to continue business uninterruptedly and it was the duty of the authorities to take note of this and pay attention to the grievances it faced.
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