International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) has won the 34-year concession for the development and operation of the second specialized container terminal of the Port of Manzanillo on the Pacific coast of Mexico.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange Tuesday, ICTSI said it was declared the winner by the Administracion Portuaria Integral de Manzanillo, S.A. (Integral Port Administration).

The concession agreement will be signed on January 15, 2010 and take over is scheduled on July 1, 2010. ICTSI said Manzanillo is the busiest port of Mexico.

Reuters reported from Mexico City the contract is worth $771 million.

ICTSI, one of Asia's main port companies, will invest in Mexico's top port, Manzanillo on the Pacific, to build and operate docks with a capacity to handle 2 million containers a year, the communications and transport ministry said in a statement, Reuters said.

Manzanillo moves 46 percent of Mexico's container flows and the government is eager to see the port expand to handle growing traffic from Asia.

ICTSI beat Spanish, Chilean and Mexican investors for the contract.

The port development project covers an area of 77 hectares with 1,080 meters of sea front. The development of the terminal will be done in three phases.

The first phase will involve 42 hectares with 270 meters of quay length. Construction of the first phase development is expected to be completed within three years from the signing of the concession agreement.

ICTSI reported consolidated unaudited net income attributable to equity holders for the first nine months of the year fell 29 percent to $37.2 million from $52.4 million in the same period of 2008.

The firm said the lower net income attributable to equity holders was mainly due to lower volume brought about by the decline in global trade.

It also blamed higher interest expense due to higher debt level, and the depreciation of currencies in the countries where ICTSI’s ports are located (Philippine peso, Brazilian reais, Malagasy ariary, Euro) relative to the US dollar.

Excluding the effects of foreign exchange translation, net income attributable to equity holders should have declined by 21 percent to $41.2 million.

For the nine months ending September 30, 2009, revenue from port operations decreased 15 percent from $352.3 million to $299.3 million while EBITDA also decreased 17 percent from $154.9 million to $129.1 million.