Shipping, Drayage and Intermodal Alerts for December 15th, 2021
USA Port / Terminal Updates
East Coast – Savannah vessel wait times have improved as the port authority has opened off-shore container yard sites to improve container dwell time at the shore terminals; however, the import volumes remain high with another record month of volumes in November. Container dwell times are still an issue with New York / New Jersey and other ports – any delays in securing chassis, returning empties, or terminals locating containers reduce the efficiency and availability of trucking operations at the ports.
Chicago Inland Ramps – rail ramp facilities in Chicago are still reporting severe congestion, high container dwell times and chassis shortages. In a recent industry webinar, 75% of companies in Chicago reported paying US 12.5 million in rail storage in August. Some experts are questioning the speed of rail providers to provide solutions to the freight delays.
West Coast – Oakland port will be installing a new terminal operating system in January 2022. There will be no gate/vessel operations January 7-8. The week of January 10th there will be reduced gate hours/appointments and no second shift. Normal operating hours are scheduled to resume the week of January 17, 2022. Vessel wait times / congestion remain high at both Seattle and Vancouver where recovery efforts are still ongoing for transport infrastructure impacted by regional flooding. In Southern California the vessel wait times at Los Angeles and Long Beach are now averaging 18-25 days.
Holiday schedules for port terminals and facilities. For US West Coast ports, the ILWU labor union will observe Monday December 27th for Christmas Day and Monday January 3rd for New Year’s Day. For US East Coast / Gulf ports, the ILA labor union will observe Christmas day on Friday December 24th and New Year’s Day on Friday December 31st, 2021. Individual terminal operational hours may vary.
View details by port on Hillebrand’s Port Updates page here.
Update on West Coast Excess Dwell Fees / Terminal Storage Charges
Oakland port – Temporary Terminal Storage Charges for SSA’s Oakland International Container Terminal (OICT) will go into effect December 20th, 2022. Oakland notice here.
Seattle – Temporary Terminal Storage Charges for SSA’s Terminals 5, 18, 30, Huskey and Washington United Terminals were implemented as of December 1st, 2022. Seattle notice here.
Los Angeles / Long Beach – Temporary Container Dwell Fees have yet to be enforced citing a 47% decrease in excess dwelling containers since the initiative was announced. The fee implementation will be held off for reassessment again on December 20th, 2021. View notices published on the Port of Los Angeles website LA/LB notice here.
PierPass increases on December 1, 2021 – PierPass rates for pickups during peak weekday hours (7AM and 5:59PM) will increase December 1st through January 31st to USD 78.23 per TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit).
Europe to North America
Strikes in Italy and Spain this week and next will disrupt transport operations and add to existing delays. For Italy the strike dates are on December 16 (national strike) and December 17 (truckers and drivers unions). For Spain the strike dates are for December 20 – 22, 2021 (truckers union). Major seaports in the United Kingdom and North Europe have experienced delays from port congestion and this disrupts the circulation of equipment. As the winter season progress, prepare for seasonal delays and protect temperature-sensitive cargo with operating reefer equipment or at minimum Hillebrand VinLiner insulation.
South Africa
Ocean carrier schedule changes are impacting space available on shipments out of South Africa. Routings to the US East Coast via Europe are full as there are space constraints due to congestion at European ports. Services via Asia have been suspended or on hold due to transshipment congestion in Singapore and Shanghai. A general rate increase on this trade lane from Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) goes into effect on December 1st, 2021.
Oceania / New Zealand
Australian government is launching an inquiry into the country’s supply chain problems and focused on the labor dispute between Patrick Terminals and the Maritime Union of Australia. Port productivity and overall delays have impacted the entire supply chain and the circulation of equipment and services have also negatively impacted sailings from New Zealand as well.
NASA and Hillebrand Holiday hours
NASA and Hillebrand USA offices will be closed on Friday December 24th, 2021 for Christmas Day and closing 4 hours early (local time) on Friday December 31st, 2021 for New Year’s Eve.
View advisory on holiday dates for ISF filings and airfreight arrivals here.
For more information on specific origins or bookings for upcoming shipments, including alternative shipping ports, air freight options for urgent orders, or reefer or VinLiner equipment for temperature-sensitive products, please reach out to your Hillebrand representative for more information or login to myHillebrand.