The collection of handling charges in excess of those approved for the Pakistan International Bulk Terminal (PIBT), which handles imported coal at Port Qasim, has triggered an increase in the production cost of coal-fired power plants and industries, say importers. The letter, written by Lucky Commodities Coal Division Chief Executive Tahir Ahmed, stated that PIBT was taking benefit of its monopoly and was collecting arbitrary coal handling charges, which ran into millions of dollars. “After reducing the free storage period, the company imposes storage charges on the importers.”The letter added that in India, coal handling charges were fixed at $2.5-3.5 per ton while free storage period of 45 to 60 days was provided. The Port Qasim Authority (PQA) has also told the terminal operator to abolish the ancillary charges but the company continued to collect them. “Under the implementation agreement, PIBT is well within its rights to charge for additional or ancillary services that include but are not limited to storage charges, customer service charges, yard facilities’ charges, weighing charges and labour charges,” he said.

Source: The Express Tribune October 11, 2020 04:18 UTC