The Da Nang Port in central Da Nang city handled about 1.3 milliontonnes of cargo, including 47,000 TEU on container ships, in the firstquarter of this year, a 37.6 percent rise compared with the same periodlast year, a local newspaper reported.

Last year, the totalvolume of cargo transported through the port reached 5 million tonnes,the highest ever recorded in the city, Da Nang Today added.

In an effort to encourage local shipping companies and businesses toshift freight transport from road to sea, four domestic sea transportroutes between Da Nang, Sai Gon and Hai Phong ports have been opened. This has helped facilitate enterprises in Da Nang, as well as in thecentral region and highlands, to access low-cost freight transportservices.

According to calculations by local businesses, thecost of transporting goods by sea will be less than 30 percent of thaton road. As a result, 90 percent of big businesses in the city and thecentral region and highlands have so far transported their cargo by seainstead of by road.

The Da Nang Port is targeting to handle5.5 million tonnes of cargo by the end of the year, and the target isquite feasible.

However, Da Nang Port General Director NguyenThu said that the port is facing an overload of container ships, withthe port’s container handling wharves kept very busy.

Inaddition, an area of the port is designated for receiving cruise ships,which causes an increase in the overload. As a result , the Da NangPort is now in need of expansion and more wharves. It is hoped thatthe implementation of the Tien Sa Port expansion project over the 2011 -2017 period will be completed on schedule in order to meet theincreasing demand of customers.-VNA