..and P&O Ports CCCL at Chennai following suit
P& O Ports is also facing congestion problems at Chennai on Indias east coast, where feeder operators increased the congestion surcharge from $15 to $50/TEU as from July 15. Chennai International Container Terminal Ltd (CCCL) has been suffering from serious berthing delays and a drop in productivity following a strike in late May, which resulted in the general manager tendering his resignation.
The terminal’s 300 metre quay, which has an alongside draught of 14 metres, is capable of handling up to 400,000TEUs per annum.
Feeder operators are claiming that it is now taking an astonishing 5-6 days to turn a vessel around, since productivity has slipped from 25 movesper-crane-hour prior to January to a low of 15 moves at present. The additional surcharge will remain in place until such a time that vessel turnaround is achieved within 24 hours over an unbroken period of two weeks.
In response to complaints from users, the Port Trust has announced it is to invest US$10.84m in converting an existing general cargo berth to handle containers as a means of providing an alternative outlet to CCCL.
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