Shippers could soon save money on parking thousands of their container vessels at the Port of Long Beach.

The Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners on Monday will consider a proposal that could adjust how the port charges shippers for the time it takes to dock here.

The port currently charges on a 24-hour basis. The proposal calls for shippers to be charged in six-hour increments.

So a ship that’s been parked at the dock for 25 hours, for example, would be charged for 30 hours instead of 48 hours.

For the port, the change means an 11 percent reduction in dockage revenue, which in 2012 was estimated at $1.2 million, according Trade Development Director Don Snyder in a staff report.

But harbor officials see the proposed change as a way to help improve cargo flow and keep the port competitive by making it more attractive for shippers to drop anchor here, said spokesman Lee Peterson.

“It saves shipping lines money because it gives them more of a reason to move out of their berthing spots when they know they can save some fees on the docks,” Peterson said.

The Port of Oakland enacted a similar approach in 2005.

If approved, the change would become effective on Dec. 1 in Long Beach.

The meeting will take place at 1 p.m. at the Harbor Department Administration Building, 925 Harbor Plaza in Long Beach.