INTERNATIONAL Container Terminal Services Incorporated (ICTSI) is purchasing a 60 per cent stake in Chinese port operator Yantai Gangtong Container Terminal Company (Gangtong Container Co.), which manages the terminal in the mainland's Shandong province.

This marks the first foray into the mainland terminal operation market for the Philippine-based global port operator.

ICTSI signed a joint venture contract worth an undisclosed sum with the Yantai Port Group Company and SDIC Communication that enables the other two parties to retain a 20 per cent interest each in Gangtong Container Co.

The deal is subject to regulatory approvals in China, particularly as the management is seeking to convert Gangtong Container Co. into a Sino-foreign joint venture.

Located within the Port of Yantai, Gangtong Container Co. operates container berths 38 and 39 of the Yantai Gangtong Terminal, including a 280,000-square metre container yard and back up area.

Yantai Port is ranked 10th among all the ports in China, after handling 1.16 million TEU in 2006, an increase of 68.4 per cent over the volume handled in 2005.

Yantai lies at the eastern tip of the Shandong Peninsula, bordering the Yellow Sea and Bohai Bay. With a population of 6.5 million, Yantai registered a GDP of about CNY240 billion (US$30.76 billion) in 2006, up 19.2 per cent over the year before.