APMT Yokohama Port Expansion: A New Era of Global Trade
BY Wayne Yoshida
Last year, APM Terminals Japan won a tender for a 10-year agreement with the Yokohama-Kawasaki International Port Corporation (YKIP) to increase berth capacity at its Yokohama terminal by adding two additional large berths (MC3 and MC4), giving APMT a strong competitive edge as the only terminal operator in the greater Tokyo area capable of handling vessels up to 20,000 TEU. The development will increase terminal volumes from 1.1m TEU to 2.4m TEU and is expected to serve as a platform for attracting additional liner customers.
Yokohama Port at a glance
A major logistics hub for Japan’s West Coast, the Yokohama-Kawasaki International Port Corporation (YKIP) has been named the most efficient port in the world by CPPI earlier this year. Yokohama Port Corporation data show that in 2019, the port handled more than 32,000 ships with a gross tonnage of nearly 300 million. The port’s container cargo throughput stood at 2.9 million TEU & takes just 1.1 minutes on average to load or unload a container in a standard port call.
YKIP celebrated its 160th anniversary in 2019.
APM Terminal Expansion in Yokohama
APM Terminals is located in Yokohama Minami-Honmoku and is the nearest port to the entrance of Tokyo Bay, the biggest, deepest, and most sophisticated container terminal in Japan, with views of Mt. Fuji in the distance.
Earlier this year Ms. Sakura Kuma was appointed as CEO of APMT and at the same time became the first female CEO in a Japanese port.
Upon the completion of MC4 development, in April 2021, APMT officially kicked off a brand-new integrated operation at MC1, 2, 3 and 4, the entire container terminal complex on the outskirts of Yokohama city. This complex has been developed as a pilot project under the International Strategic Port policy of Japan. All four quays are intensified seismic resistant.
The total area covers 854,000㎡, handling capacity is estimated at 2.4M TEU per year, which makes APMT the biggest terminal in Japan. Expansion to the adjacent reclaimed land remains available, giving them many more opportunities for further development. MC1/2 has a quay length of 700m, a draft of 16m, an out-reach of the gantry cranes up to 22 rows, can accommodate up to 14,000TEU container vessels. MC3/4 has a quay length of 900m, a draft of 18m, an out-reach of gantry cranes up to 24 rows, capable to handle ultra-large container vessels.
In fact, APMT is the only terminal that can accommodate vessels of that size, which makes us the most advanced terminal in Japan. Four berths under one operation also add incomparable flexibility to the services and value we provide.
Two gate locations ensure accessibility to both sides of the yard. The gate at MC1/2 side has 15 in-lanes and 3 out-lanes, gate at MC3/4 side has 12 in-lanes and 3 out-lanes, which counts 33 lanes in total. Free access to both sides of the yard is guaranteed once entered. On top of that, designated waiting areas are secured in front of the two gates separately.
They are the first terminal in Japan to adapt CONPAS, the gate reservation system developed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism. APMT’s relentless efforts make it unique in avoiding congestion at the gate and improving turn-time for the truck community.
As the gateway connecting Japan to the world, APMT has the best covered domestic feeder service network, all the way up from Hokkaido, down to Kyushu. International service network connects from Pacific to Atlantic, and of course intra-Asia as well. It also enables them to provide shipping lines the shortest navigation time, and the availability to reduce all relevant costs associated.
On the land side, direct access to the Capital Expressway as well as the whole national expressway network offers the best convenience to meet the logistics needs of their customers.
