Ashdod, Haifa ports on verge of collapse - Haaretz

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Sun., September 09, 2007 Elul 26, 5767

Israel Time: 02:14 (EST+7)

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Ashdod, Haifa ports on verge of collapse

By Avi Bar-Eli

"Manufacturers, importers and exporters can now work in peace," declared then-finance minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a press conference on February 23, 2005, announcing approval of the ports reform.

But the conclusions of an external report on the functioning of the ports that TheMarker obtained show that Netanyahu's optimistic forecast is increasingly removed from reality, more and more with each passing day.

The waiting time for cargo ships in the Ashdod port jumped in the first quarter of 2007 by 40 percent compared to the same period in 2006, and reached 62.5 hours on average per ship. The waiting time for container ships was up 257 percent, and in Haifa it rose 194 percent.

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"We are walking with our eyes wide open into a catastrophe," said Reuven Zuk, the president of the Israel Chamber of Shipping, "but this time no one can claim that they did not know. Everything will collapse."

The deterioration in the ports' operation stems from a continued rise in shipping and a lack of other solutions. The Ashdod port suffers from a shortage of manpower, a poor work ethic, faulty maintenance and a lack of equipment. The Haifa port lacks adequate infrastructure and also suffers from overloaded conditions due to the large number of ships it receives, which are diverted from Ashdod.

Hovering above all these problems are the incomplete port reforms that have brought about a total and systematic paralysis in regulating the ports.

The Manufacturers Association claims that the situation in Ashdod has caused direct damages of NIS 110 million.

A few months ago, Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz ordered the establishment of a steering committee to find a solution to the port problems. The committee ordered the report from an international consulting firm and it describes the situation in the ports, the barriers to change and short-term solutions. Altogether the picture is bleak.

The Haifa Port Company responded by saying that the problems were caused by an exceptionally large number of ships arriving, including those diverted due to the strike in Ashdod - and that it did the best possible under the circumstances. In addition, it claims that the situation has improved and productivity has increased.

The Ashdod Port Company said it has yet to receive the report, but management has been making great efforts for the past year to provide an answer to the growth in world trade.

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