BURMA PORTS CONTINUE LIMITED OPERATIONS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 RANGOON 000414 SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/MLS, S/ES-O-CMS, DS/CC AND DS/IP/EAP, INR/EAP DEPT PASS TO USAID/OFDA PACOM FOR FPA TREASURY FOR OASIA E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/27/2018 TAGS: EWWT ECON ETRD PGOV PREL BM SUBJECT: BURMA PORTS CONTINUE LIMITED OPERATIONS REF: A. RANGOON 413 ¶B. RANGOON 353 RANGOON 00000414 001.4 OF 003 Classified By: Economic Officer Samantha A. Carl-Yoder for Reasons 1.4 (b and d) ¶1. (C) Summary. The Burmese Port Authority has opened all four of Rangoon's ports, albeit for limited operations. Myanmar International Terminal Thilawa (MITT) continues to receive the majority of incoming ships, as the Port Authority continues to dredge the Rangoon River and repair jetties at the other ports. The Rangoon ports serve up to 10 ships a day; Port Authority records show that the majority of ships are exporting Burmese goods, including beans and pulses, logs, and rice. Several shipments of relief supplies arrived at Rangoon Port, although contacts confirmed that Burmese Customs officials were closely scrutinizing deliveries and confiscating goods that appeared destined for commercial resale. According to shipping industry officials, the Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC) exported 17,000 metric tons of rice to Africa on May 19, although private companies have not yet exported 7,000 metric tons of rice to Sri Lanka. Burma continues to receive steady shipments of diesel fuel, with seven ships arriving between May 22 and May 27. End Summary. Four Operational Ports -------------- ¶2. (C) Myanmar Port Authority officials continue to work diligently to repair the Rangoon ports, Bay Line Shipping Director Captain Quamruddin Ahmed told us (Ref B). Officials have removed more than 30 boats from the bottom of the Rangoon River, using mobile cranes on loan from crony businessmen Tay Za and Steven Law. Small feeder cargo, diesel, and container ships now have limited access to all four of Rangoon's ports, Ahmed explained. Myanmar International Terminal Thilawa (MITT) continues to receive the majority of traffic, since its jetties are in the best condition. Asia World staff have rebuilt much of the private port area, so the port can now handle two ships at one time, Embassy contact Anwar Hussain told us. Ahmed noted that the majority of ships that were using Asia World Port brought in goods for the government, while private businesses used MITT. The jetties at Sule Warf and Bo Aung Kyaw Port remain in bad 
shape, limiting the number of ships that can dock there, he added. Port Authority officials will continue to dredge the river and repair the jetties to allow more ships to move in and out of the Rangoon Port area. -------------- -------------- Rangoon Port Ship Capacity As of May 25, 2008 -------------- -------------- Port Pre-Cyclone Post-Cyclone Cargo Capacity Capacity Handled -------------- -------------- MITT 5 ships 3 ships bulk/container --MIPL 1 ship -- bulk Sule Warf 7 ships 2 ships bulk/container Bo Aung Kyaw 3 ships 1 ship container Asia World 3 ships 2 ships bulk/container -------------- -------------- ¶3. (C) Currently, Rangoon's four ports can handle up to ten ships a day, Ahmed explained. Despite efforts to restore electricity to the port area, none of the ports have a constant supply of electricity so port operations are limited RANGOON 00000414 002.4 OF 003 to 10 hours a day. According to Ahmed, government officials are focused on the resumption of exports rather than the import of relief goods, most of which come in by air rather than by sea. Each day, one can observe workers loading products - including logs, agricultural products, commercial goods, and rice - on to ships, he noted. Since May 22, more than five ships have departed Burma carrying logs, two ships transported agricultural products, and five left with commercial goods. The government has made receiving shipments of diesel fuel and condensate a priority, he acknowledged, although much of the fuel is brought in by private companies that sell it on the local market. -------------- -------------- Incoming and Outgoing Vessels Port of Rangoon May 22 - May 30, 2008 -------------- -------------- Vessel Name Date Cargo -------------- -------------- ITT Lion 5/22 Load - beans/pulses Intan 5/22 Deliver - cement Mandalay 5/22 Load - container goods MT. Star Orion 5/22 Deliver - diesel Bang Lar 5/23 Load - logs Banga Barta 5/23 Load - ag. Products TCI Arjun 5/23 Load - logs Pha Shwe Gya Wywa 5/23 Deliver - relief goods/ general cargo Mandina 5/23 Load - logs Marina Star - 2 5/23 Load - container goods MT. Nepline Redang 5/23 Deliver - Jet Oil MT. Perg Prai 5/24 Deliver - oil Mt. Po Yang Hu 5/24 Deliver - condensate Caraka Jaya Niaga 5/25 Load - logs So Na 5/25 Load - logs Ellen S 5/25 Load - container goods Kota Tegap 5/25 Load - container goods Gati Zipp 5/25 Load - container goods Trinity 1 5/25 Deliver - diesel MT. Ocean Hawk 5/25 Deliver - condensate Hakha 5/26 Deliver - relief goods/ General cargo MCP Rotherdam 5/26 Load - container goods MT. Ocean Eagle 5/26 Deliver - condensate Myitkyina 5/27 Deliver - relief goods/ General cargo Helios - 3 5/27 Load - logs Kota Tabah 5/27 Load - container goods MT. Chem Rose 5/27 Deliver - diesel Mawlamyine 5/28 Deliver - cement Eagle Pride 5/28 Load - container goods Sagaing 5/28 Load - container goods Southern Arrow 5/30 Load - logs -------------- -------------- Source: Myanmar Port Authority Customs Monitoring Shipments -------------- ¶4. (C) Both Hussain and Ahmed confirmed that in mid-May, Burmese Customs officials were ordered to inspect all relief cargo coming into the Rangoon Port. Hussain explained that the GOB had allowed companies to import relief goods without proper import permits, so several companies took advantage of the lax policy to bring in commercial goods for resale. Ahmed disclosed that on May 21, customs officials inspected several palettes of water purification tablets, only to find RANGOON 00000414 003.4 OF 003 that the boxes contained antibiotics for commercial sale. He also noted that several companies brought in medicines (which need an import permit) disguised as hygiene kits. Customs officials confiscated these goods and have ramped up inspections of incoming containers. ¶5. (C) Hussain noted that because the Port Authority was limiting the number of ships bringing in commercial imports, businesses were becoming increasingly desperate for goods. Some companies brought in goods via illegal border trade, but others continued to wait patiently for their delayed shipments. While he did not condone the practice of bringing in commercial goods under the label of relief supplies, he noted that the GOB, in focusing more on exports rather than imports, was forcing businesses to smuggle in goods in order to survive. Status of Rice Exports -------------- ¶6. (C) Ahmed told us that the GOB continues to allow exports of rice, although since the cyclone, only military-owned Myanmar Economic Holdings (MEC) has successfully completed an order. On May 19, MEC exported 17,000 metric tons of rice to Africa, he confirmed. Private companies with contracts to export rice to Sri Lanka and Africa still have orders pending (Ref B). Bay View Shipping is still loading 7,000 metric tons of rice destined for Sri Lanka onto a cargo ship; the loading process is taking a long time because the Port Authority limits loading hours, Ahmed explained. Bay View Shipping, which had expected to ship the rice to Sri Lanka by May 19, has delayed the final delivery date to mid-June. The Sri Lankan Government continued to press for its 50,000 metric tons of rice, Ahmed declared, noting that the Sri Lankan Ambassador had contacted both the Ministry of Trade and Bay View Shipping about the status of the shipment on several occasions. Comment -------------- ¶7. (C) The Port Authority has successfully resumed limited operations at all four of Rangoon's ports, far ahead of its July schedule. It remains unclear when full port operations will resume, since it will take several months to rebuild jetties and dredge the remainder of the Rangoon River. The regime continues to place more emphasis on the export of Burmese products rather than on the import of either commercial goods or relief supplies, showing its priorities remain financial (mostly personal) rather than relief for its people. That some companies are trying to smuggle in commercial goods as relief supplies shows how increasingly desperate they are for supplies. As Customs officials inspect and seize more cargo at the Rangoon ports, more businesses will look for new ways to bring in commercial goods, either through illegal border trade or via commercial air. VILLAROSA