Covid-19 restrictions on crew and the congestion caused by a lack of equipment, particularly has seen Ocean Network Express (ONE) temporarily suspend in bound cargo to a number of southern Chinese ports for inbound cargo.
Strict cargo inspections and disinfection requirements for reefer imports have meant slower throughput of reefer cargoes at Fuzhou and Fuqing ports, increasing congestion. As a result, ONE has temporarily stopped taking cargo bookings for these destinations with a loading date of 8 December onwards and until further notice.
“For containers in transit, ONE highly encourages customers to consider a change of destination to alternative ports, especially for time-sensitive cargoes such as fresh, chilled commodities,” said a company statement.
Moreover, the company said that for cargo already in transit to Fuzhou/Fuqing which is held at a transhipment port pending a feeder connection to one of these two ports, ONE will apply a surcharge at the time of loading “as soon as feeder space is made available”.
Meanwhile, feeder operators between South China and Hong Kong have said that due to the quarantine rules for vessel crews on board coastal feeders, services will be suspended from mid-January to the end of February 2021.
As a result, ONE has announced it will temporarily suspend the acceptance of cargo bound for the ports in the South China area and Fujian, listed below, through South China main ports with the estimated arrival date to the main ports described in the table below:
Nick Savvides
Managing Editor
