Inland Water Transport (IWT) earns K1.3 billion ($1.3 million) a year from chartering ships and is working to improve the water transport sector by instituting good practices, U Myo Naing, assistant general manager of IWT, said.
IWT, on an average, has been chartering around 10 ships to private businesses for a whole year, and also chartering ships for other short distance and short-term runs.
“We provide about 10 short distance charters a month in Yangon and around 20 charters in Rakhine state and Thanlwin river. IWT has stopped receiving funds from the government budget so we have to make our own earnings and also seek necessary capital by other means,” U Myo Naing told Myanmar Business Today.
IWT has chartered at least six two-storey passenger ships, two freight carriers in Yangon, one freight carrier in Monywa and one two-storey passenger ship in Rakhine state this year.
IWT owns a fleet of 68 vessels including both active and inactive ships. IWT conducts inspections on the ships it has chartered every six months. The maximum period of contract for charter is one year and any damage or change incurred during the contract term must be compensated in line with the prevailing market price of the time.
