The Chittagong Port Authority has detained a 1,718 TEU container feeder vessel operated by Hapag Lloyd in the Chittagong-Colombo route after it hit and damaged a quay gantry crane.
The German carrier deployed the Liberia-flagged vessel namely Hansa Rendsburg on this route last month to cut the operator’s dependence on other feeder vessels.
In its maiden trip, the vessel came to the outer anchorage of Chittagong port on 27 September and took berth at the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) on the following day. While taking berth at jetty five of the NCT the vessel hit and damaged slightly a quay gantry crane.
After unloading the boxes, the vessel was supposed to load 1,400 TEU of Colombo-bound containers but the port authority did not let the vessel load export containers but rather sent it to the outer anchorage on 30 September.
Port officials informed the vessel’s local agent that the vessel will be allowed to leave the port after the assessment of damage and the issue is settled.
However, the authority could not start the assessment of the damage even two weeks after the incident.
The Chittagong Port Authority had received the quay gantry crane from the Chinese state run company ZPMC and they were waiting for the company’s technical team to visit Chittagong to assess the damage.
However, due to Chinese National Day linked holidays, none of the ZPMC officials visited Chittagong and the vessel remained detained in the outer anchorage of the port to count financial loss of US$20,000 a day and make stockpile of containers in both ports it touches.
A representative of the local agent of the vessel did not comment on this issue. However, port sources said the port authority had asked the agent to sign an “unlimited undertaking” to get the vessel freed. However, the agent did not agree to sign such a bond.
Industry people said usually assessment of such “small” incidents is being completed in two days and vessels are given permission to leave the port without any delay.
They added the crane did not suffer a lot and thus continued loading and unloading following the incident. The port authority could have completed the assessment very quickly instead of keeping the vessels waiting 14 days.
Captain Ahmed Ruhullah of Henderson Marine Bangladesh Ltd, a Vessel Haul & Machinery P&I Club, said the port authority could not provide the damage assessment in two weeks which could have been done in a day or two.
“On one hand, the vessel owner is counting financial loss due to the delay,” he said and added that on the other hand, the port’s image is being seriously damaged by detaining a vessel for a long time.
Chittagong Port Authority spokesperson Omar Faruk did not respond to Container News’ request to comment on the issue.
Sharar Nayel
Asia Correspondent
