OOCL to levy US West Coast surcharge, citing congestion
Published: 08/12/20
Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) Tuesday said it will implement an “emergency intermodal surcharge” of $350 per dry container at US West Coast ports from Jan. 1, becoming the latest carrier to impose surcharges to address congestion and container imbalances.
The surcharge applies to all truck deliveries from the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland, Seattle, and Tacoma, but moves in which a shipper has designated a specific trucker are exempt from the fee. Although Southern California has been the eye of the storm for Asia imports this extended peak season, the implementation of the surcharge at other major West Coasts ports reflects building pressure at those gateways.
The new surcharge comes as container lines enjoy record eastbound spot rates to the West Coast. CMA CGM has expanded its $350 emergency intermodal surcharge beyond inland destinations to include all containers moved out of the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex for local delivery and to area rail ramps. Starting Saturday, Zim Integrated Shipping Services will implement an equipment imbalance surcharge of $250 per FEU, both dry and high cube, on the Asia-North America trade.
The Southern California supply chain continues to suffer from congested marine terminals, excessive container dwell times at the terminals, lengthy truck wait times at the gates, chassis shortages, and distribution warehouses filled beyond capacity.
The congestion helped lead to eastbound trans-Pacific ocean reliability plummeting in October to its lowest since data collection began in 2011. Vessel on-time performance in the Asia–North American trade last month plunged to 32.1 percent to the West Coast and 34.5 percent to the East Coast, according to the Global Liner Performance report from Sea-Intelligence Maritime Analysis.
In Southern California, the supply chain has been further stressed on the landside. The receiving warehouses are so full that loaded import container/chassis units are left sitting outside the facilities. This delays the return of the empty container/chassis units to the marine terminals, which in turn has created a shortage of chassis in the supply chain.
Source: www.joc.com
