New Mekong Port to Ease Overloaded Phnom Penh Terminal

With cargo traffic at the Phnom Penh Autonomus Port growing rapidly, a nearly completed container terminal just south of the city on the Mekon River should help ease the congestion. The 30-hectare port, in Kandal province's Kein Svay district, was completed late last month, though cranes have yet to be installed, and will be inaugurated in December, according to Hei Bavy, director general of the Phnom Penh port, which will operate the new terminal. ... He said that the new port would initially be able to handle 120,000 containers a year to start and would increase to 300,000 containers by 2015. ... Chan Sophal, president of the Cambodian Economic Association, said the Phnom Penh port has also become a cheaper option for exporters of goods such as milled rice and garments than shipping through the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, which can only handle smaller ships that usually have to transfer their goods onto larger vessels for longer trips. ...