On Friday morning, Western Europe found itself in the grip of an icy spell, with winter storms lashing ports across the Bay of Biscay and the Balearic Sea, spreading as far north as Germany and, in the south, also affecting North Africa.
At Tangier Med in Morocco, terminals were shut down as inclement weather halted safe crane operations in the Strait of Gibraltar.
From Spain, the same reports were received from the ports of Bilbao, Valencia and Algeciras.
In Portugal, the ports of Leixões and Sines and in the north and south, were impacted, and in Antwerp, Rotterdam, Hamburg and Gdansk, container movement slowed down significantly, Kuehne + Nagel said.
Maersk issued the following warning: “South-West and Western Europe are experiencing severe winter weather conditions, including heavy storms and snowfall.
“The severe conditions are causing significant industry-wide disruptions, with vessels sheltering and terminals having to stop operations or working with reduced productivity. As a result, productivity at terminals and depots has been reduced, while snow and icy road conditions are causing traffic congestion and delays for inland transportation to and from terminals.”
The carrier explained that these factors were contributing to longer waiting times for both import and export cargo, as well as increasing yard congestion at several terminals.
“At the time of publishing, terminals in the West Mediterranean have stopped operations, with no clear indication of when operations can start again. This also impacts cargo flows to and from North Europe.”
The Danish line added that while the Bay of Biscay had seen some improvement in weather conditions, these were expected to worsen again throughout the week.
“This situation is affecting the entire industry, and due to the severity and uncertainty of the conditions, we expect delays and closures to continue to impact vessels and terminals across the board. Our teams are working hard to minimise the impact on your supply chain with contingency plans, schedule recoveries, and other measures within our power. The teams are also in close contact with partner carriers, third party terminals, and other stakeholders to reduce the impact of this situation in a joint effort.”
Maersk requested that shippers receiving import containers do so without delay as it would help minimise the pressure on terminals,
“Prompt pick-up will support smoother operations and help reduce congestion and pressure on the terminal. When delivering containers to terminals, please ensure that snow and ice are removed as thoroughly as possible to allow for safe and efficient handling.”
It added that for logistical support to move cargo between terminals and final destinations, it had an Inland Transport Solutions service.
