PSA consortium wins Busan New Port bid

PSA consortium wins Busan New Port bid    PSA International and Hanjin have won a bid to operate three berths at the Busan New Port, the Busan Port Authority said Thursday.
   It wraps up a prolonged process to find an operator for berths that BPA recently bought back from Pusan Newport Co., a joint venture between DP World and the Korean government, that was struggling due to lower than expected container volume at the new deepwater complex.
   BPA had to extend three tenders to prospective bidders for the project due to problems with the first two (the second tender received no bidders). But the third time was evidently the charm, with the PSA-Hanjin bid competing against one from Korea Express.
   BPA said the bids were evaluated based on 'proposed leasing fees, ability to attract cargo, company track record and stability, and plans to contribute to the future development of Busan Port.'
   The port authority did not release financial terms of the concession, nor the length of the deal. The three berths make up half of the Phase 1-1 portion of the New Port, with the DP World joint venture operating the first three berths.
   Along with DP World, Hanjin and Hyundai either operate or are developing berths in the New Port, which is about 20 miles outside of the existing container port.