According to PACTL deputy general manager Lutz Grzegorz, the cargo handler, which serves 40 per cent of the international cargo passing through Pudong airport, focused on strict control of its operational cost and manpower utilisation last year in order to face the global recession.

“PACTL, whose core business is providing cargo warehousing services, handled a total of 911,000 tonnes of cargo last year, representing a 12 per cent year-on-year decline in overall cargo throughput,” he said, adding that of the total figure, international freight comprised 879,000 tonnes and domestic freight 32,000 tonnes, down 13 per cent and up 100 per cent respectively.”

“For the month of December, PACTL handled 11,200 tonnes of international freight and 590 tonnes of domestic freight, up 31 per cent and 481 per cent respectively,” he added.

Asked about PACTL’s customers, Grzegorz said the company had a total of 38 customers, including airlines with scheduled flights and others. “We provide warehousing operation servicesto customers and any other additional applicable services upon customers’request.”

The company’s terminal has a handling capacity of 1 million tonnes of cargo per year and 300,000 tonnes capacity at Terminal 2. Its PACTL West terminal was officially opened in December 2008, and has a designed capacity of 1.2 million tonnes (but has the capability to handle 2 million tonnes of cargo annually, if required).

“We do have excess capacity of at least 50 per cent for future growth, but we are not able to foresee when we can fully utilise all the existing capacity, as it totally depends on how the economy develops and what portion of marketshare PACTL can successfully take,” Grzegorz said.

Government backing
According to draft measures released by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) in the fourth quarter of 2009, China will provide support to airlines providing air cargo service in terms of market access, the management of flights and routes, transportation prices, and the protection of newlyopened routes.

The draft encourages full cargo airlines to build company branches and cargo distribution centres, CAAC said, adding that such moves would further strengthen the management of international cargo flights and routes.

The draft noted that based on changed costs of cargo airline companies, the price for air cargo businesses will be moderately adjusted upwards. Air cargo companies are also encouraged to carry on purchases, mergers and restructurings, in an effort to foster several internationally competitive full cargo companies in China. Asked about PACTL’s growth forecast in 2010 and 2011, Grzegorz said based on the current economic situation at home and abroad, and also regardless of any changes of its existing customers, the cargo handler forecasts volume growth of between 5-8 per cent in 2010, and figures the growth will be the same in 2011 as well.

Competition
With regards competition from neighbouring airports such as Nanjing Airport, Hangzhou Airport and Ningbo, he said in the Yangtze River Delta area, Shanghai’s two airports at Pudong International Airport and Hongqiao Airport, based on their advantageous location and the economic status in China, form the key (hub) airport compared with surrounding area airports. “No airport in the vicinity of Shanghai can compete with Pudong International Airport at this moment, especially at the cargo side,” he added.

Grzegorz said although delivery of cargo to cargo terminal facilities is normally the business of shippers or its forwarding agents in the Shanghai market, PACTL operates trucking services for international import cargo, delivering the cargo from its facilities to agent’s bonded warehouse at Pudong International Airport, due to Pudong airport’s customs regulations. “In addition to this service, we also help our customers transfer their import cargo to 32 inland customs airport destinations with customs bonded trucks.”

Asked about the express business at Pudong airport, Grzegorz said almost all the express cargo (except UPS’ cargo which moves via its newly built facilities at Pudong airport), had to be handled at the Pudong express operation under an on-site special supervision by customs. “At this moment, we handle mainly DHL, and some other express companies’ cargo, depending on whether they use commercial flights of our customers,” he said.

PACTL was founded as a Sino- German joint venture in 1999 to provide airlines, agents and cargo companies with a full-range of cargo terminal services. Shanghai Airport owns 51 per cent of the joint venture while Lufthansa Cargo has a 29 per cent stake.

PACTL, situated on a total area of 146,200 square metres at Pudong International Airport in Shanghai, has meantime evolved into one of the world’s leading cargo terminals. Its facilities include parking and delivery zones as well as warehouses for refrigerated, valuable or mail shipments.