Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd line will impose congestion surcharges on all containerised cargo moving to and from Chennai, the second major Indian port to attract such charges in recent weeks.
The carrier said the surcharge from September 5 will be US$50 per TEU on export containers and US$65 per TEU on import boxes.
"The Port of Chennai is showing an increased congestion, impacting terminal productivity as well as vessel sailing schedules, both resulting in increased costs," the carrier said.
Disruptions at Chennai were triggered by strikes by container truck drivers from end-June to mid-July to protest increased vehicle turnaround times, creating a huge import backlog, reported Newark's Journal of Commerce. According to port sources, the terminal yard held more than 12 000 containers, mostly imports.
"The single port gate access has put a tremendous strain on the terminal operators with the result that truckers are required to wait for hours in long queues to enter the terminal area," said a local shipping agent.
Chennai's two terminals handled 1.52-million TEUs in the year ending March 31 and 552 000 TEUs from April through July.
Several major carriers earlier slapped similar surcharges on boxes moving through Mumbai's Jawaharlal Nehru Port following severe terminal congestion and berthing delays caused by the quay crane replacement at the port-run terminal.
About 75% of India's containerised traffic moves through Mumbai and Chennai, and the unprecedented turmoil at these ports could have serious adverse impact on government efforts to boost the country's export trade, targeted at US$450-billion for 2013/14.
