Navis has taken its first step into Vietnam, where its SPARCS terminal operating system should be up and running this year in Ho Chi Minh City at Vietnam International Container Terminals (VICT)  facilities.

Officials announced installation of the system during a ceremony to celebrate expected expansion of container handling areas. Container throughput growth is estimated at 20 percent a year, according to Oakland, Calif.-based Navis, and is expected to remain high following the nation's entry into the World Trade Organization.

"The SPARCS system will help VICT to maximize productivity and ensure we can handle the increase in volume without compromising on efficiency for our customers. This will enable us to maintain our position as one of Vietnam's leading container ports," says Truong Quoc Hung, VICT chairman.

In 1998, VICT began operations as the country's first purpose-built container terminal. Since then, handling capacity has increased from under 50,000 TEUs in 1999 to nearly 450,000 TEUs in 2006. VICT's expansion reportedly will bring total berth length to 678 meters, and raise handling capacity to 900,000 TEUs by 2008.

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