Heavy lift &project cargo hit by port congestion

2012-09-19

  Heavy Lift vessels calling at Indian ports are forced to wait for days together before being allowed to berth. At a time when cargo throughput is reported to be falling at most ports this unwarranted congestion happens to be prevailing mostly in major ports (which come under the federal government) and a few private ports. The worst congestion for heavy lift cargo is being experienced at Kandla port where the berthing delay under normal export group is 16 to 18 days. And for import ships under normal group is 12 to 14 days.

  According to a circular issued by Sai Maritime &Management Pvt. Ltd., the present picture shows congestion existing also in Haldia port where ships have to wait for about 3 to 4 days. Besides, this port which is situated on the East coast is fraught with problems and the lack of storage space remains a big challenge. Also on the East coast is Paradip port where the waiting time is 3 to 4 days and Vizag port being congested, vessels can expect berthing delay of 5 to 6 days for project / general cargo. At Tuticorin port waiting time is about 2 to 3 days. Mumbai Port on the West coast faces no congestion except at the Harbor wall berths &BPX where a delay of 3 to 4 days is considered normal.

  No one wants to discharge heavy lift cargo at the various private ports located in the vicinity of these major ports because they are very expensive and the consignees end up paying more than three times of what they would normally spend to get their cargo through a major government-run port. At private ports, consignees are confronted with many additional charges for storage, stevedoring, royalty, demurrage, handling charges, etc. All these charges are levied even though the port may not handle any part of the cargo. When it comes to project cargo, ports calculate the waiting period which results in the cost going up exorbitantly.

  Ship operators allege that ports like Kandla, Vizag and Haldia indulge in the discriminatory practice of giving ‘priority’ berthing to all vessels except heavy lift ships. The reason for sidelining heavy lift vessels as being their turnaround time that extends from three to five days compared to bulk and container cargo vessels which is just a few hours. However, the situation at some of the other major ports is somewhat better but they suffer from a tremendous dearth of storage facility.

  Many Heavy lift solution providers say that Mundra port being a private port there is no fixed tariff. They allege that if there is congestion at the neighboring Kandla port, then Mundra port see this as an opportunity to hike their schedule of rates for project and heavy lift cargo. It is a somewhat similar situation at some of the other private ports as well.

  Generally private ports are not equipped to handle project cargo weighing more than 100 tons. Even though the consignee arranges for handling the cargo the royalty is collected by the port on the grounds that the port’s infrastructure has been utilized. No port has any dedicated berth for heavy lift cargo except Paradip port. But if there is already a ship discharging cargo there then other heavy lift vessels have to wait their turn.

  Hence operators prefer using major ports as their tariff is found to be very reasonable. They even prefer to lose out on the higher cost for the longer land transport and wait at the anchorage compared to using a private port.

  Source: Maritime Professional

Source from : Maritime Professional

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