Anonymous - 11-30-2004 at 12:07 AM
http://www.frontera.info
November 29, 2004
Hutchison Port Holdings, part of the Hong Kong conglomerate Cheung Kong Group, will invest US$1.2 billion in a new port in Ensenada over the next ten
years. According to an article in the Tijuana newspaper Frontera the port would be similar to the one in Long Beach, California and would be the
primary port of the Asian Pacific.
Three Ensenada locations are currently being considered for the port, said Deputy Antonio Rodr?guez Hern?ndez, the president of the Baja California
House of Deputies? Commission for Economic Development and Port Affairs (Comisi?n de Desarrollo Econ?mico y Asuntos Portuarios de la C?mara de
Diputados). The locations are Punta China, Bocana de Santo Tom?s and Punta Colonet.
The port will also require other investments to link it to surrounding areas, Rodr?guez stated. A railroad would connect Mexicali with Yuma, Arizona
and a new highway would join Punta Colonet with Ensenada and Tecate.
Rodr?guez noted that the state legislature has important work to do to make sure that the environment is protected. He also said that the legislature
must create conditions that guarantee that the investment is profitable.
According to Rodr?guez, a port is needed that can handle between 1,000,000 and 1,500,000 containers per year.
When this level of activity is compared to that at the Port of Long Beach it does not seem that Ensenada?s new venture would necessarily unseat Long
Beach in terms of its importance to US-Asia trade. The Port of Long Beach moved 4.6 million container units in 2003 according to its web site. It
also describes itself as the second busiest port in the US and as the ?world's 12th busiest container cargo port.?
Currently, the Ensenada port can handle 100,000 containers a year although it averages 60,000 per year. Dredging operations that will begin in
December 2004 will allow fifth-generation boats to dock at the port. This will increase capacity to 250,000 containers per year.