by Priya Radünzel, SeaNewsEditor
Stay ahead of supply chain disruptions and port congestion with Kuehne+Nagel’s weekly port operational update.
Middle East Africa
Cameroon
Douala: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2.63 days. Import yard capacity is around 80%. Three vessels were at anchor at the time of publishing.
Djibouti
Djibouti: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 4.5 days. Yard density is around 65%, but reefer capacity is almost utilised.
Gambia
Banjul: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 15.5 days. The port is experiencing severe congestion, with no berthing windows available. Four vessels were waiting for a berth at the time of publishing.
Ghana
Tema: The 7-day waiting time is 2.90 days. Seven vessels were at anchor at the time of publishing.
Ivory Coast
Abidjan: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2 days.
Mozambique
Beira: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is 7 days. Strong winds and high swells are forecast for 15 October which could impact vessel and landside operations.
Senegal
Dakar: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2.5 days. One vessel is currently at anchor.
Togo
Lome: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2.25 days due to equipment and weather delays.
South Africa
Durban: Some carriers report vessel delays of up to 10 days at Pier 1 and 12 days at Pier 2 due to crane and equipment breakdown. Wind delays are expected for 14 and 15 October. Nine vessels were at anchorage at the time of publishing.
Cape Town: The port expects high winds at the beginning of week 42. Due to weather interruptions, carriers report waiting times of around three days.
Coega: Some carriers report waiting days of up to 2 days at NCT due to weather disruptions.
Tanzania
Dar es Salaam: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is more than 5 days. Yard occupancy has improved to around 55%.
Asia Pacific
Bangladesh
Chittagong: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.3 days. Due to heavy port congestion, some can wait up to 2-3 days. Yard occupation is around 76%, leading to slower discharge operations, but the situation is improving. Equipment breakdowns are adding to delays.
China
Shanghai: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2.49 days. Heavy berth congestion continues at WGQ2, with waiting days of 3 days or more. YS is also experiencing congestion, resulting in waiting times of up to 2 days.
Ningbo: The 7-day waiting time is around 1.48 days. Berthing congestion has eased overall. YZCT continues to be heavily congested, with 2-3 days waiting times.
India
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast continued heavy rain for Chennai and its neighbouring district on 15 and 16 October. Container Freight Stations (NACFS) issued a statement warning of significant disruptions to container movement by road and rail. Delays in the transport and clearance of both import and export containers from all CFS and terminals can be expected. Kuehne+Nagel reports that delays due to the severe weather conditions are likely to occur at the ports of Chennai, Kattupalli and Ennore. Read more
Mundra: Carriers are experiencing continuous schedule delays, impacting the entire berthing line-up at CT4. Missed-window, no-window, and ad hoc calls will be berthed on a FIFO basis.
Philippines
Manila: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2.42 days. Due to adverse weather, Manila North and South are heavily congested, and some vessels can wait up to 4 days for a berth.
Singapore
Singapore: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.03 days. Yard congestion has eased to between 75-80%.
South Korea
Busan: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.25 days. Occupancy is high at the BNCT yard. The situation at the port remains highly dynamic due to vessel bunching and late arrivals affecting the berthing line-up.
Europe
Belgium
Antwerp: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.33 days, and yard occupancy is around 74%.Seven ships were at anchor at the time of publishing.
Germany
Hamburg: The 7-day vessel waiting time is around 1.17 days. Yard utilisation is at 102%, resulting in the port limiting empty returns for all carriers. Labour shortages at night and on weekends are adding to delays. Rail delays at the terminals are as follows: CTA - 7 hours, CTB -12 hours and Eurogate - 4 hours.
Italy
The COBAS union announced a 24-hour general strike for transportation and logistics workers on 18 October. Port operations and connections to/from the terminal could be affected.
Genoa
The average 7-day vessel waiting time is around 1 day. On 16 October, a port workers' strike is expected to disrupt operations at PSA Genoa Prà and PSA Genoa Sech for 24 hours. A nationwide transport and logistics workers' strike on 18 October could impact port and transport operations.
Venice: Unions have declared a 24-hour strike for 16 October for the workers of the PSA Venice terminal.
Netherlands
Rotterdam: Yards are highly congested due to large vessel calls and vessel bunching.
Slovenia
Rail connections from and to the Port of Koper, Slovenia, continue to be impacted by railway closures and reconstructions.
Rail service operator METRANS reported that the situation had had adverse effects in connections to and from the Adriatic.
As a result, trains to and from Koper are facing multiple cancellations. Read more
Spain
Spanish labour unions CCOO and UGT have announced a general strike in the road transport sector, set to begin on 28 October. Overall, 70% of employees in the sector are represented by UGT or CCOO. The strike will occur on 28 October, 11, 28, and 29 November, 5 and 9 December, and will become indefinite from 23 December.
The movement of containerised cargo to and from the country's ports will likely be impacted during the strike days. Read more
Algeciras: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.07 days. Crane repairs and pavement works affect the vessel line-up. Yard density is over 90%, and empty stock is high, affecting yard fluidity. Seven vessels were at anchor at the time of publishing.
UK
London Gateway: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.3 days. Yard occupancy is approximately 75%. The opening of Berth 4 has been postponed to 1 November, adding pressure on existing berths and resulting in move count restrictions. Empty stocks are above the free pool level, which could lead to restrictions on returns.
North America
Canada
Montreal: The St. Lawrence River’s low water levels are disrupting container vessel traffic, impacting cargo transport to and from the Port of Montreal. On October 10, docker workers suspended overtime work indefinitely. This could cause delays to container and vessel operations. In a recent update concerning the strikes at the Port of Montreal, Canada's Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon has proposed a 90-day freeze on strikes and lockouts to facilitate contract talks. Read more
Average Rail Dwell Times:
- Halifax: 6 days
- Montreal: 8 days
- Prince Rupert: 9 days
- Vancouver: 9 days
USA
Houston: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2.20 days. Landside operations are back to running smoothly with no delays.
Miami: The Port of Miami has reopened after Hurricane Milton. All waterside and landside restrictions have been lifted by the U.S. Coast Guard. The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 3 days. The port is congested, leading to an average driver detention time of three hours. Additionally, appointment slots fill up very quickly.
New York: Continuous daily congestion at all terminals leads to driver detention times of up to five hours. Truckers are facing challenges securing appointments at GCT and APM terminals.
Norfolk: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.75 days. Following the strike, a chassis shortage increased turn times to approximately 2 to 3 hours. The situation is now improving, and the current turn time per container is about 1 hour.
Savannah: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.89 days. Port operations are running smoothly. However, securing a chassis may take up to three hours, which could cause some trucking delays.
South and Central America
Brazil
Santos: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.56 days. The Port of Santos has been facing a series of adverse weather events that have negatively impacted the terminals, resulting in significant congestion in vessel scheduling. The arrival of off-window vessels is also contributing to the accumulation of vessels waiting for berth availability.
Costa Rica
Caldera: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is 2.67 days. Port congestion due to bad weather is delaying container dispatch operations at the import yard. Yard utilisation is 93%, resulting in strict regulation of empty return containers.
Mexico
Lazaro Cardenas: Yard occupancy is around 80%. The berthing lineup is congested with off-window vessels waiting 7 days. Intermittent rain is affecting operations.
Manzanillo: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 4.9 days. During the wind season, vessels will berth on a FIFO basis and have no fixed berthing windows.
Panama
Manzanillo: Yard is overcapacity at 150%. Pier 5 will be inactive for two weeks due to crane relocation. Rail delays may occur as contingency cargo will be moved via truck. Omissions due to cut-and-runs are possible.
El Salvador
Acajutla: The average 7-day vessel waiting time is around 8.5 days due to congestion. Docks A-1 and A-2 are undergoing repairs and maintenance, and a dock crane is also out of service. These constraints are causing significant delays for vessels before they can commence operations. Due to yard congestion and a trucker shortage, there is low trucker availability. Container pick-up from the port is subject to trucking slot availability, with an average truck availability is 3-4 days. Some carriers report dry container shortages.
Stay Ahead Stay Informed: Register for seaexplorer for the latest disruptions and vessel waiting times at global container ports.
Last week's Port Operational Update can be found here.
