All ports on Batam Island will soon introduce a new information and technology (IT) system in a bid to curb income leaks, an official says. Head of Batam Port Office's Commercial Unit Heri Kafianto said the new system, to be implemented by 2009, would integrate the movements and activities of all ships using the island's 111 ports. "We have been using the new system, the Port Management Portal (Portmap), since August 2008 and there have been clear increases in efficiency," said Heri after attending the launch of Portmap in the West Java capital of Bandung recently. Heri said the old system could not integrate surveillance activities in all the ports and increased the likelihood of income discrepancies. The new system is required to provide ports with a more effective and efficient service similar to those operational in the ports of Singapore, Mala...