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Affiliated Computer Services Inc, a Dallas technology outsourcing firm, said PierPass, the consortium of terminal operators at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach has awarded it a contract to develop and operate the ports' peak-hour fee collection program.
The contract is valued at approximately $12 million over three years with two, two-year renewal options.
"Cargo volume is expected to double by 2010 and PierPass will help to alleviate congestion and provide shippers with greater flexibility," said Bruce Wargo, general manager of PierPass. "
Terminal operators have introduced the Pier Pass program by offering discounts to shippers who elect to move their cargo off the LA and Long Beach terminals during nights and weekends.
The PierPass program is scheduled to begin June 1, 2005. The program was developed in response to community and political pressure to cut pollution and congestion in and around the port. The fees, which have are $20 per 20’ and $40 per 40’ or larger, will help terminals cover the costs of operating extended gate hours during nights and weekends.
For more information, please go to www.pierpass.org
Diesel and gasoline prices have once again broken records last week, both climbing more than 5 cents a gallon to new highs, the Department of Energy said.
The national average retail price of diesel fuel jumped 5.4 cents to $2.303, breaking the $2.30 mark for the first time. Gasoline leaped 6.4 cents to $2.217, DOE reported.
Before a 5-cent increase two weeks ago to a then-record $2.244 a gallon, diesel's previous record had been $2.212, set last Oct. 25.
Gasoline's price was 43.7 cents higher than the same time last year, DOE said.
Diesel was 65.5 cents higher than a year ago. The trucking industry burns about 650 million gallons of diesel a week, meaning the industry was paying about $425 million more this year than the same week last year.
The price increases followed rises in crude oil futures last week and Monday on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Oil hit a then-record $57.60 a barrel Friday then rose even higher Monday, reaching a record $58.28 in intraday trading before receding to close at $57.01, Bloomberg reported.
DOE reported that diesel rose by at least a nickel in almost every region in the country, led by a 6.9-cent spike in the state of California to $2.581 a gallon, the nation’s highest average price.
The West Coast region was close behind, rising 5.8 cents to $2.541 a gallon. The only region rising less than 5 cents was the Rocky Mountain area, which rose 3.5 cents to $2.361.
Each week, DOE surveys 350 diesel-filling stations to compile a national snapshot price.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection has unveiled its final baseline standards for importers participating in the voluntary Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism.
Without much fanfare, CBP posted the long-awaited criteria on its Web site (www.cbp.gov) along with a phased implementation schedule that took effect immediately.
As of March 25, new importer applicants will need to meet or exceed the security criteria before they are accepted into the program and can receive reduced exam rates and other benefits.
Importers who have had their security profiles reviewed and certified by Customs will have 60 days to implement measures for container security (including the placement of a high security seal and procedures to verify the integrity of the box at the point of stuffing), facility security and access controls for employees and visitors.
The final compliance phase will begin six months from now, when existing importers must verify that overseas suppliers and transportation providers have appropriate security procedures in place to prevent a terrorist weapon being inserted in a shipping container. The draft instructs importers to verify whether business partners are C-TPAT members and, if not, requires them to demonstrate that they are meeting the baseline C-TPAT security criteria.
CBP said it would verify that baseline security measures are in place when it conducts on-site visits to validate importers are meeting the terms of their agreement. More than 8,800 companies have signed up for C-TPAT, half of which are certified. CBP has only validated about 460 companies.
The new C-TPAT criteria for importers can be found at: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/import/commercial_enforcement/ctpat/criteria_importers/.
©2005 FMI International