Extra transport costs outweigh advantages Alan peat THERE HAVE been no reports of any large-scale ship or cargo diversions to Port Elizabeth or Cape Town following the port congestion surcharge being selectively lifted at those two ports but retained in Durban. Barry New, MD of P&O Nedlloyd, told FTW: “We have not seen any diversion of cargo large enough for us to notice.” A major importer/exporter agreed, having no reports of any ships changing their port rotations nor any significant shifts of cargo to either of the two alternative ports. “Anyway,” he added, “the extra cost of getting cargoes down to PE or Cape Town outweighs any advantage in saving the surcharge.” Nolene Lossau, executive director of the SA Shippers Council (SASC), also came up with a negative reply. But, at the same time, she did point out that Cape Town was possibly not the best alternative at the moment, with a recent shut-down because of stormy weather likely to cause bunching at the port. But, by the same token, she added that Durban was still in problematic waters as far as port congestion was concerned. At the time of talking to FTW, Lossau pointed to SA Port Operations (Sapo) figures showing that seven vessels were alongside, with two just due to depart Ð and seven ships waiting outside the port. Added to this, she told FTW, the average ship delay was quoted at 47-hours, and the worst at 119-hrs.
