Surcharge takes Morwe by surprise

Terry Hutson TAU MORWE, SA Port Operations (SAPO) chief executive says he learned that shipping lines intended imposing a $75 surcharge on containers handled at the port of Durban only after he was summoned to a meeting with DurbanÕs mayor last Friday (18 January). Morwe was summoned by mayor Obed Mlaba after Durban newspapers reported that all major container shipping lines intended imposing a surcharge from 15 February, because of costly delays at Durban. This would have the effect of making Durban the most expensive container port. "Adding to the unpleasant surprise was the fact that shipping lines made no attempt to utilise the Container Liner Operators Forum (CLOF), a body which had been set up specifically to help jointly solve problems at the port when delays were experienced in the past," he said. Morwe said the lines should become part of the solution and not part of the problem. He appealed to them to withhold the surcharge, saying that this would be coming at a time when the port was operating normally. SA Port Authority intends mediating between the shipping lines and SAPO at a meeting to be held in Durban on Wednesday, 23 January.