THE EVALUATION OF COMPETITIVENESS ON COST ADVANTAGE OF REGIONAL HUB PORT: THE CASE STUDY OF TRANS-PACIFIC ROUTE AGAINST KAOHSIUNG PORT

Numerous conventional container ports in East Asia are evolving from intercontinental into regional hub ports. This study adopted the Port of Kaohsiung as an example of competition with neighboring ports. The results of this study demonstrated that the Port of Kaohsiung is still a competitive docking port on trans-Pacific trunk routes for North America, despite facing external threats (e.g., upsizing of ships, lack of new deep-water terminals, and new strategic alliances affecting terminal operations), overall shipping cost considerations (e.g., container volume, different ship sizes, and port selection), and increasingly intense competition with neighboring ports. Under such circumstances, the Port of Kaohsiung must keep pace with container ship upsizing, sufficiently increase deep-water terminal capacity, and improve its existing container terminals’ operating efficiency to attract route deployment and larger container ships and thereby maintain its current advantages and position as a regional hub port.

Policies for Improving PM2.5 Particles and GHGs Emissions in a Maritime Port of Taiwan: Evidence Based on the INDC and GGRMA Regulations

The impact of possible emission reduction policies designed to reduce port emissions in the Port of Kaohsiung in Taiwan was analyzed, focusing on ways to reduce air pollution from CO2, CH4, N2O, PM10, PM2.5, NOx, and SOx generated by vessels, cranes, and truck tractors in the port. This paper was set up in two stages to determine how pollution reduction policies could reach the 2030 and in 2050 goals. The results showed that emissions of CO2, CH4, N2O, PM10, PM2.5, NOx, and SOx could be reduced by 46%, 26%, 25%, 77%, 77%, 76%, and 68%, respectively, in the first stage (in 2030, INDC), and by 57%, 59%, 53%, 79%, 79%, 80%, and 69%, respectively, in the second stage (in 2050, GGGRMA), as compared to 2005 data. This paper concludes as follows: (1) for vessels, the use of liquid natural gas is the best way to reduce GHGs when navigating by water; (2) for bridge cranes, electrification is the better policy during operation; (3) in the case of truck tractors, the generation of battery-electric power is the best way to reduce emissions. These policy proposals for improving air quality can be applied to all ports in Taiwan.

Analysis of tugboat operation and towage fees in a Taiwanese port and alternatives for improving tugboat operation by the Delphi method

The purpose of this article is to analyze the towing operation problem and towage incomes of the Kaohsiung port in Taiwan, and then propose feasible improvement alternatives for making tugboat operations more smooth and efficient, solving the problem of port congestion, and enhancing the port’s navigational safety. First, by analyzing 23,336 sets of actual data of merchant vessels entering/exiting the port of Kaohsiung and the 28,787 sets of actual data of tugboat operation at the second channel of Kaohsiung port in 2017, we can understand the relationships among towing operations, merchant vessels, and towage income. Second, the scenario analysis associated with the concept of towage fee differentiation was applied to analyze the relationship between towing operations and tugboat revenues in various scenarios. Third, the study proposed feasible alternatives for improving the port congestion problem and enhancing tugboat operation effectiveness by using the Delphi method. We believe that the improvement alternatives and recommendations from this study are practical and feasible and can help in policy formation and decision-making of port tugboat operations in the future.

The Fateful Voyage of Tanker “Tuapse”: Chronicle of Detention

The capture on 23rd June 1954 of the Soviet oil tanker “Tuapse” by the Republic of China (ROC) Navy became one of the most dramatic episodes in Cold War history. The Soviet vessel heading from Odessa to Shanghai was transporting, as indicated in the Bill of Lading, lighting kerosene. In the neutral waters of the Luzon Strait, north of the Philippines, the tanker was shelled, detained, and the crew were arrested, then escorted to the port of Kaohsiung in the south of Taiwan. This event which was developing into an international sensation almost provoked an armed clash between the United States of America (USA) and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). The aggravated confrontation overflowed onto the pages of the press, concentrating in diplomatic debates at the United Nations (UN) meetings during which the accusation raised respectively against Taiwan of “violating freedom of navigation on the high seas,” and to the USA of aiding to piracy. The detention of the tanker “Tuapse” in 1954 became a pretext for fierce debates and conflicts between Taiwan and the USSR at the UN. Thirty years later, in the second half of the 1980s, the discussion about the consequences of this incident resumed the fragile political contacts between Taiwan and the USSR, which became a noticeable sign of a thaw in their relations, though no one had yet imagined at that time how far the process of rapprochement could go. Based on recently declassified documents from the archive of the ROC Ministry of Defense, especially the reports of Navy officers who performed the operation to their commanders, this paper reveals the chronology of how the interception of the “Tuapse” Soviet oil tanker was implemented.

The Evaluation of Competitiveness on Cost Advantage of Regional Hub Port: The Case Study of Trans-Pacific Route Against Kaohsiung Port

Numerous conventional container ports in East Asia are evolving from intercontinental into regional hub ports. This study adopted the Port of Kaohsiung as an example of competition with neighboring ports. The results of this study demonstrated that the Port of Kaohsiung is still a competitive docking port on trans-Pacific trunk routes for North America, despite facing external threats (e.g., upsizing of ships, lack of new deep-water terminals, and new strategic alliances affecting terminal operations), overall shipping cost considerations (e.g., container volume, different ship sizes, and port selection), and increasingly intense competition with neighboring ports. Under such circumstances, the Port of Kaohsiung must keep pace with container ship upsizing, sufficiently increase deep-water terminal capacity, and improve its existing container terminals’ operating efficiency to attract route deployment and larger container ships and thereby maintain its current advantages and position as a regional hub port.