Leading container companies have announced plans to impose additional fees to cover the costs of rerouting their vessels in reaction to recent attacks on ships in the Red Sea and threats from the Houthi rebel organization in Yemen.
According to Businessday, these surcharges have been implemented by major shipping lines, such as Maersk, CMA CGM, and Hapag-Lloyd, to cover the longer journey times and distances incurred by skipping the conventional Suez Canal route.
The first companies to declare these costs were Maersk and CMA CGM. Later on Friday, Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd joined them in enforcing the fees.
These companies, who are among the leading international shipping lines, have made the decision to stop sending their ships via the Red Sea, which is typically the quickest sea route between Asia and Europe.
Rather, they are choosing to make their way around the Cape of Good Hope in Africa. The typical 27-day travel from China to Northern Europe is further extended by this detour, adding roughly 10 to 14 days to the trip.
Late on Thursday, Maersk announced that an urgent transit disruption levy would be implemented in order to cover the increased costs associated with the extended voyage. They also intend to begin imposing a peak season surcharge on January 1. These actions are being taken at a time when marine transportation is becoming more and more expensive.
