BPA Signs MOU to Strengthen Win-Win Cooperation Between Busan Port and Kanazawa Port, Japan

Busan Port Authority (BPA) signed an MOU for logistics linkage cooperation with Ishikawa Prefecture, the port authority of Kanazawa Port in Japan, at the Busan Port International Passenger Terminal on the 3rd, and held a joint seminar to promote the use of the Busan-Kanazawa route.

Kanazawa Port, located on the western coast of Honshu, Japan, is geographically adjacent to Busan Port, with eight weekly Busan routes established. Large shippers such as Komatsu, the world's second-largest heavy equipment manufacturer, use this route.

BPA and Kanazawa Port have maintained a steady cooperative relationship by holding joint briefings and other activities to revitalize the route and increase cargo volume between the two ports.

At this event, BPA signed an MOU aimed at strengthening practical cooperation with Kanazawa Port. The MOU includes contents for smooth logistics between the two ports, such as joint promotional activities, which is expected to contribute to Busan Port being continuously utilized as an export-import hub port for the Ishikawa region.

Ishikawa Prefecture Governor Hase Hiroshi (left) and Busan Port Authority President Kang Jun-seok are taking a commemorative photo for the signing of the memorandum of understanding.

This year, the container cargo volume of Busan Port bound for Japan recorded 1,459,000 TEU as of June cumulative, showing a decrease of about 3.4% compared to the previous year due to the decline in export-import cargo volume between Korea and Japan.

It is also interpreted that the recent establishment of the Naehang feeder service, a competing route of the Busan-Japan route, on the western coast of Japan for the first time has influenced the decrease in cargo volume. Accordingly, Busan Port plans to strengthen cooperation with Kanazawa Port in Ishikawa Prefecture, where the Naehang feeder has not yet called.

The Naehang feeder is a domestic container route in Japan connecting local ports with major ports such as Kobe and Yokohama. At this seminar, Ishikawa Prefecture Governor Hase Hiroshi personally appeared as a speaker to explain the current status and merits of Kanazawa Port. In addition to the governor, a delegation of 25 members including local assembly members visited Busan, showing active efforts to strengthen cooperation with Busan Port.

BPA President Kang Jun-seok said, “Japan is the second-largest major market based on transshipment cargo volume at Busan Port, and about 10% of Japan’s total export-import cargo of 17.92 million TEU in 2021 is transshipped at Busan Port,” adding, “We will do our best to attract more cargo by further strengthening cooperation with Japan’s regional ports.”