PORT OF GENERAL SANTOS
GENERAL INFORMATION
General Santos City is less than 2,000 kms. away from Singapore and is the nearest point in the Philippines to Australia. This port city is bounded in the south by the magnificent Sarangani Bay and Mt. Matutum, the highest peak in South Cotabato, towering at 2,293 meters above sea level, in the far north. There are large rivers, numerous streams inundating the land and making the soil very rich, giving credence to Mindanao’s moniker, “Land of Promise”. Because of the city’s good weather, with its typhoon-free location and evenly distributed rainfall, the city and surrounding areas have enormous economic and development investment potentials. It is now the center of three major regional improvements for the integrated transport system in Southern Mindanao including an international airport, highway facilities and the modernization and expansion of Makar seaport. Now the city is positioning itself to be an investor’s haven in Mindanao, and the expansive role of the port of General Santos in the city’s ascent as of the major investment centers and agroprocessing centers of Region XI is highly recognized. Considering its strategic location within the Southeast Asian economic zone and its proximity to its Asian neighbors like Singapore, Malaysia, Borneo, New Guinea and Australia, General Santos is indeed a gateway to the Asean economic zone of influence.
TRADE AND COMMERCE Agrictulture
As a pioneer in the banana export industry and one of the leading pineapple producers, South Cotabato, Sarangani and Sultan Kudarat, the areas surrounding General Santos City, have earned an enviable place in domestic and international markets. The place boasts of a rich natural resource base which make it ideal for agribusiness and agroindustrial ventures. South Cotabato is now known as the “Breadbasket Of The South” since it thrives on its agricultural produce. Fruits, fruit juices, vegetables, copra, coconut oil, tuna fish and other marine products are among the leading exports. Over 322,600 hectares of land are planted to a wide variety of crops ranging from staple rice and corn crops to cash crops and agricultural commodities of export value. GENSAN, South Cotabato and Sarangani province produce 23% of Philippine corn crop, 40% of pineapples and 8% of coconuts. The province also produces most of the cotton crop. Livestock production is a major business in General Santos and surrounding areas. Swine and cattle make up the principal shipments accounting for a quarter of a million shipments in 1992. About 46% of fish caught in Moro Gulf and South Sulu Sea enter the province making it one of the leading fish producers of the country. Over 24% of the daily catch go to domestic markets such as Cebu, Manila, Cagayan de Oro, Agusan, Butuan and Davao; 28% is directly shipped to foreign markets such as Japan, USA, Canada, Middle East and Western Europe; while 30% go to processors/canneries and the rest to the local market.
Industry
Asparagus – The sunrise industry Initially about 200 hectares of prime land have been developed in Polomok, South Cotabato for cultivation of asparagus, now considered a sunrise industry. It was further expanded in 1990 to 600 hectares. Production and sales figures jumped in 1991 to a volume of 933,231 kgs. from 213,129 kgs. in 1990 and it is continuously increasing. The Fishing Industry General Santos has 34 commercial deep sea fishing firms operating in the fishing grounds of Sarangani Bay, Mindanao Sea, Celebes Sea, Sulu Sea and Moro Gulf. In addition, more than 5,000 motorized and non-motorized bancas engage in municipal fishing. The local fishing industry unloads an average of 250-300 MT of fish daily. Dominant fish caught are the high valued yellow-fin tuna, marlin, round scad, skipjack and others. The GSC Fish Landing will soon be moved to a 12 hectare fish port complex designed to handle 300 MT daily with all the needed facilities as cold storage, ice plant, brine, blast and contact freezers and fish container storage. Fish Processing Five fish canning/processing plants operate in the city. A recent industry is fish fillet processing by Yamaoka Nippon Corp., a Japanese-Filipino venture. In 1991, combined export product totaled 9065 MT of canned tuna. Cutflowers Cutflower cultivation is an infant but fast growing industry in the locality. Dolefil-Tropi Fresh and the South Cotabato Cutflowers Cooperative are the two firms engaged in this industry. Dole Tropi-Fresh has gone into commercial-scale production thus penetrating the export market. Export of lower species, anthurium and heliconia grossed US$80,597 in 1991. Prawn Industry Dole Seafood Division, RD Fishing and the Alcantara Group and Sta. Monica are but few of the companies spearheading business efforts to make the city into one of the aquaculture centers in the country through prawn farms. Processed Fruits and Vegetables Dole Phil., Inc. (Dolefil) is always setting the pace in fruit production. This industry comprises about 55% of the total export of General Santos and South Cotabato. Around the beautiful Mt. Matutum, 15,000 has. are planted with pineapples.
OTHER INFORMATION Natural Resources
Over 322,600 hectares of land are planted to a wide variety of crops, changing the hues of the city and the province’s landscape all year round from green to brown, yellow and gold. That is
the color of General Santos, South Cotabato and Sarangani provinces., the color of progress, because its richness lies in its abundant natural resources. Fishes of almost any kind and size can be found in the landing port of South Cotabato. Onshore, fishfarmers grow milkfish (bangus), prawns and tilapia. Because nearly one half of the port hinterland’s cropland is planted with corn, the poultry and livestock industries thrive in the province. The area is also rich in metallic and non-metallic deposits. The non-metallic include limestone, guano, gypsum, ilmite, nitrate, sulfur, tale, kaolin, and chalcedony. The cement raw material reserve is estimated at more than 1.3 billion metric tons. Most metallic mineral deposits are iron and copper.
PORT PROFILE
Location Latitude 06 06'N Longitude 125 09'E Located at the head of Saranggani Bay midway at the Southern Coast of Mindanao about 2 kilometers from General Santos City, South Cotabato. Port of General Santos embraces all that portion of Saranggani Bay Bounded by an imaginary line extending across the Bay from Tanpuan Point Sumpang Point. Thsi shall include all foreshore areas and delineated port area of the Makar Wharf. Total Port Area : 101,189.00 sq.m Original Land : 40,370.00 sq.m Reclaimed Land : 60,819300 sq.m Commercial Land : 77,781.55 sq.m Entrance Channels The following signals are recognized by all pilots: - The pilot jack hoisted at the fore - The international code signals or P.T. - The international code signals P.T. by flashing lights Seismic Condition The Philippine Archipelago lies between the two major tectonic plates of the world, the Pacific Plate and the Eurasian Plate. The interactions and movements along the active faults are responsible for strong earthquakes in the Philippines. The most active part is the eastern section including eastern Mindanao. General Santos City is situated about 20 kms from the Mindanao fault. The annual average number of perceptible earthquake is six. There are three major geological formations in the Makar port General Santos
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Port Limits
Foundation Condition
PORT FACILITIES
Description
Reinforced concrete general purpose wharf handling conventional and containerized cargo as well as domestic passengers. Marginal Wharf - 561 m x 19 m (5 berths) Wharf Extension - 27 m x 12 m Roro Ramp - 9 m x 11 m Landing Platform - 9 m x 12.9 m Three (3) units with an individual dimension of 72 m x 30m total floor area of three (3) sheds is 6,480 sq.m. 27 x 12 meters R.C. wharf extension with 9 x 11 meters Roro ramp and 12.92 meters R.C. landing platform. Name Compania Maritima I Compania Maritima II WG&A Inc. Eastern Shipping Sulpicio Lines Lorenzo Shipping Lines Container Yard I Container Yard II Container Yard III Old Quay Chassis Storage Area Area 18.40 x 20m 18.40 x 20m 18.40 x 10m 54.40 x 20.27m 34.25 x 20.00m 16.25 x 20.00m 10,632 sq.m. (Paving Blocks) 11,248 sq.m. (Paving Blocks) 7,840 sq.m. (Paving Blocks) 7,600 sq.m. 2,780 sq.m. (Paving Blocks)
Berth/Draft
Transit Shed
Ro-ro Facilities
Private Warehouses
Storage Areas
PORT SERVICES
Cargo Handling South Cotabato Integrated Port Services, Inc. (SCIPSI) Makar Wharf Llido Arrastre and Stevedoring Services (LLSSI) Dole Pier Calumpang Wharf Services, Inc. (CALWHARF) Dole Pier delas Masias Brokerage (DELAMAR) GMC Pier Tambler Manpower Coop., Services, Inc. (TAMANCO) Agrotex Serviced by GSC Harbor Pilots' Association Compulsary for all vessels of : Foreign - 100 GRT or over Domestic - 50 GRT or over Philippine Ports Authority, PMO General Santos Sarangani Water Services Serviced by Aguilar Maritime Link Services
Pilotage
Water Supply
Towage/Launches
Philippine Ports Authority. (2005). Port of General Santos. Retrieved July 1, 2005 from the World Wide Web: http://www.ppa.com.ph/Port%20Profile/Somin/gensan/gensan.htm