Billionaire Enrique Razon’s ICTSI Proposes Doubling Cargo Handling Capacity In Australia

Global port International Container Terminal Services Inc (ICTSI)—controlled by billionaire Enrique Razon Jr—is investing over A$500 million ($343 million) to more than double the cargo handling capacity at the Port of Melbourne amid booming trade in Australia’s busiest port.

Under the proposal submitted to the Australian government, ICTSI will increase the capacity of its wholly-owned Victoria International Container Terminal (VICT) to 3.7 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containers from 1.8 million TEUs currently by integrating the existing terminal with the nearby Webb Dock North Container Terminal.

Combining the two facilities would boost operating efficiencies and enable the Port of Melbourne’s four container berths to service mega vessels of up to 367 meters and can carry maximum loads of 14,000 TEUs, according to ICTSI.

“Victoria’s growing economy presents the Port of Melbourne with the opportunity to consolidate its position as Australia’s number one container port,” ICTSI executive vice president Christian Gonzalez said in a statement. “ICTSI is keen to solidify its partnership with the Port of Melbourne to deliver the lowest cost, most efficient and environmentally sustainable solution. Our vision for this operation is in lockstep with that of the Port of Melbourne’s own vision as it examines strategies to expand capacity and facilitate the growth of Victorian economy.”

Once the investment plan is approved, ICTSI will be one of the largest infrastructure investors in the State of Victoria. Since establishing VICT in 2014, the Philippine-listed port operator has invested over A$700 million to develop the container terminal.

ICTSI has been stepping up its global expansion as international trade rebounded to pre-pandemic levels. In December, announced plans to upgrade the Baltic Container Terminal in Poland, while at the same time investing more than $230 million to boost capacity by over 40% at the Port of Manzanillo in Mexico.

Besides ICTSI, Razon is also the controlling shareholder of Philippine-listed Bloomberry Resorts—operator of the Solaire Resort and Casino in Manila—as well as privately held Prime Infrastructure Capital, which has been building its portfolio of water utilities, gas and renewable energy assets. Razon has a net worth of $6.9 billion, according to Forbes’ real-time data.