The Hindu Business Line : Tea shipments through Amingaon ICD decline

TEA shipments through Amingaon (Guwahati) inland container depot (ICD) for 2004-05 have come to a close, the total throughput for the year at 1,899 TEUs in 25 rakes being slightly lower than 1,920 TEUs (28 rakes) in 2003-04.

A significant feature of this year's tea movement through the Amingaon ICD is the rise in shipments, marginally though, to non-UK/Continent ports, 630 TEUs as compared to 613 TEUs in 2003-04, and a decline in shipments to the UK/Continent ports, 1,269 TEUs (1,307 TEUs).

Among non-UK/Continent destinations, Iran and the UAE emerged important. For the first time, Iran picked up tea (32 TEUs) through the ICD while shipments to the UAE at 252 TEUs (215 TEUs) showed a small increase. The shipments to Sri Lanka at 167 TEUs (96 TEUs) and Singapore at 16 TEUs (10 TEUs) also showed an upward trend. However, the shipments to several other non-UK/Continent destinations declined - Canada 48 TEUs (96 TEUs), Pakistan 30 TEUs (88 TEUs) and the US 33 TEUs (43 TEUs).

With a throughput of 837 TEUs out of a total of 1,269 TEUs to the UK/Continent ports, the Shipping Corporation of India's share was the largest, 66 per cent, the same as the last year when the total shipments to the UK/Continent ports at 1,307 TEUs as well as SCI's throughput at 855 TEUs were more.

APL emerged as the biggest carrier for non-UK/ Continent shipments. With a throughput of 318 TEUs out of the total of 630 TEUs to non-UK ports, the shipping line's share was close to 50 per cent - up from a meagre five per cent (28 TEUs) last year. K Line, which participated in the ICD shipments for the first time this year, handled shipments to only non-UK/Continent ports - 92 TEUs.

The shipments by foreign carriers such as P&O and Maersk dropped for both UK/Continent and non-UK/Continent ports. Last year for UK/Continent ports, P&O handled 376 TEUs and Maersk 74 TEUs. This year, the corresponding figures were 348 TEUs and 10 TEUs, respectively. In respect of shipments to non-UK/Continent ports, the drop this year was much sharper — P&O 88 TEUs (202 TEUs) and Maersk 40 TEUs (303 TEUs). This is because these lines could not guarantee adequate slots in the mainline vessels.

Despite drop in total shipments through the ICD this year against the last year, there was no let up in shipments by major tea shippers such as Williamson Tea Assam Ltd and Eveready Industries Ltd — 865 TEUs (800 TEUs) by Williamson Tea Assam Ltd and 429 TEUs (418 TEUs) by Eveready Industries Ltd.

The only major shipper whose shipments dropped was Assam Company — 173 TEUs (187 TEUs). The shipments by other tea companies such as Goodricke at 14 TEUs (21 TEUs), Hindustal Lever Ltd at 312 TEUs (397 TEUs) and Moran Tea at five TEUs (57 TEUs) also declined.

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