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Airport urgently needed at Vernamfield, says Derby
BY LUKE DOUGLAS Senior staff reporter douglasl@jamaicaobserver.com
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
DIRECTOR general of the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority Lieutenant Colonel Oscar Derby is calling for an airport to be developed at Vernamfield in Clarendon in the next three years for Jamaica to take advantage of opportunities arising from the expansion of the Panama Canal.
Col Derby said the Vernamfield airport would assist in distributing goods coming into Kingston Harbour, which is poised to be the transportation hub for goods out of south-east Asia.
Head of Jamaica’s Civil Aviation Authority, Lieutenant Colonel Oscar Derby says the construction of an airport at Vernamfield in Clarendon would assist in distributing goods coming into Kingston Harbour. (Observer file photo)
The Panama Canal expansion, scheduled for completion in 2014, will see the Canal being able to accommodate mega ships which can carry 10,000 20-foot containers, Col Derby explained.
Each mega ship will replace 36 smaller ships and will result in a 75 per cent reduction in the cost of fuel to shippers.
"People who ship cargo are lining up to use these mega ships because freight charges will go down. All the manufacturers and suppliers are looking for this to happen. When these ships start coming through the Caribbean in 2014, there is one port in this part of the world that can take them, and that is Kingston Harbour," Col Derby told the Observer on Friday.
Other harbours in the Caribbean and on the eastern seaboard of the United States are unable to handle the mega ships because they are not deep enough or have bridges which would not allow the ships to pass.
"Jamaica will therefore become the transshipment hub for containers straight of the Panama Canal," Col Derby said.
The cargo for the mega ships will then be put on smaller ships destined for the Caribbean, and the US eastern seaboard and Gulf Coast.
However, the mega ships will displace the smaller ships creating a need for a nearby port in Jamaica to accommodate them, as well as rail service, the ship liners say.
"When you talk to the shipping companies you will find they have identified a need for a second port somewhere in Jamaica so they can put the containers on rail for taking to that second port immediately for distribution," said Col Derby.
Temperature and shock-sensitive goods, as well as dangerous or high-value goods would need to be distributed by air, which would make Vernamfield ideal.
"It has the space for a 10,000 to 14,000-foot runway to accommodate large aircraft. It must happen sooner rather than later," Col Derby stated.
In addition warehousing, packaging, fuel pipelines, and fibre-optic lines for ICT (information communication technology) needs would have to be established.
Col Derby warned that if Vernamfield is not developed, other countries in the region may develop artificial deep water piers to accommodate the mega liners.
On the question of cost, Col Derby said financiers from Asia, the Middle East and Europe are looking for investments of this nature and needed to be wooed.
In the meantime, public debate on development of Vernamfield needs to be stimulated immediately.
"Development in Clarendon can solve the needs of the entire Jamaica if it is done right," Col Derby asserted.
Two months ago president and chief executive officer of the Port Authority of Jamaica, Noel Hylton disclosed that $17 billion had to found to expand the Kingston Container Terminal (KCT) by 2014 in preparation for increased business resulting from the expansion of the Panama Canal.
He said then that negotiations were underway with three of the world's largest shipping lines to provide Jamaica with far more business than the KCT can now handle.
BY LUKE DOUGLAS Senior staff reporter douglasl@jamaicaobserver.com
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
DIRECTOR general of the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority Lieutenant Colonel Oscar Derby is calling for an airport to be developed at Vernamfield in Clarendon in the next three years for Jamaica to take advantage of opportunities arising from the expansion of the Panama Canal.
Col Derby said the Vernamfield airport would assist in distributing goods coming into Kingston Harbour, which is poised to be the transportation hub for goods out of south-east Asia.
Head of Jamaica’s Civil Aviation Authority, Lieutenant Colonel Oscar Derby says the construction of an airport at Vernamfield in Clarendon would assist in distributing goods coming into Kingston Harbour. (Observer file photo)
The Panama Canal expansion, scheduled for completion in 2014, will see the Canal being able to accommodate mega ships which can carry 10,000 20-foot containers, Col Derby explained.
Each mega ship will replace 36 smaller ships and will result in a 75 per cent reduction in the cost of fuel to shippers.
"People who ship cargo are lining up to use these mega ships because freight charges will go down. All the manufacturers and suppliers are looking for this to happen. When these ships start coming through the Caribbean in 2014, there is one port in this part of the world that can take them, and that is Kingston Harbour," Col Derby told the Observer on Friday.
Other harbours in the Caribbean and on the eastern seaboard of the United States are unable to handle the mega ships because they are not deep enough or have bridges which would not allow the ships to pass.
"Jamaica will therefore become the transshipment hub for containers straight of the Panama Canal," Col Derby said.
The cargo for the mega ships will then be put on smaller ships destined for the Caribbean, and the US eastern seaboard and Gulf Coast.
However, the mega ships will displace the smaller ships creating a need for a nearby port in Jamaica to accommodate them, as well as rail service, the ship liners say.
"When you talk to the shipping companies you will find they have identified a need for a second port somewhere in Jamaica so they can put the containers on rail for taking to that second port immediately for distribution," said Col Derby.
Temperature and shock-sensitive goods, as well as dangerous or high-value goods would need to be distributed by air, which would make Vernamfield ideal.
"It has the space for a 10,000 to 14,000-foot runway to accommodate large aircraft. It must happen sooner rather than later," Col Derby stated.
In addition warehousing, packaging, fuel pipelines, and fibre-optic lines for ICT (information communication technology) needs would have to be established.
Col Derby warned that if Vernamfield is not developed, other countries in the region may develop artificial deep water piers to accommodate the mega liners.
On the question of cost, Col Derby said financiers from Asia, the Middle East and Europe are looking for investments of this nature and needed to be wooed.
In the meantime, public debate on development of Vernamfield needs to be stimulated immediately.
"Development in Clarendon can solve the needs of the entire Jamaica if it is done right," Col Derby asserted.
Two months ago president and chief executive officer of the Port Authority of Jamaica, Noel Hylton disclosed that $17 billion had to found to expand the Kingston Container Terminal (KCT) by 2014 in preparation for increased business resulting from the expansion of the Panama Canal.
He said then that negotiations were underway with three of the world's largest shipping lines to provide Jamaica with far more business than the KCT can now handle.
Paul Marin -19 is one thing, 20 is a whole other matter. It gets even worse if they win the UCL. *groan*. 
05/18/2011.MU fans naah cough, but all a unuh a vomit?-Lazie 1/11/2015
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