by Priya Radünzel, SeaNewsEditor

• Stay ahead of supply chain disruptions and port congestion with Kuehne+Nagel’s weekly port operational update.  
• Find out the latest vessel waiting times and status of ports in Middle East Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, North America, and South and Central America. 

Asia Pacific

Bangladesh

Chittogram: Berthing congestion has increased, resulting in an average waiting time of 1.64 days.

China

Waiting times in Shanghai, Ningbo and Qingdao are still elevated this week due to congestion. Ahead of the Chinese New Year and alliance reshuffle, about 160 vessels are currently anchored in the Shanghai-Ningbo area and 19 outside Qingdao.

Philippines

Manila: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 4.1 days due to port congestion.

Europe

Belgium

Antwerp: Terminal operations were interrupted last week by fog. At Antwerp Gateway, cargo acceptance is limited to 5 days prior to vessel's ETA.

France

Port workers in France plan to strike for 48 hours on 3 and 4 February, impacting port operations nationwide. Read more.

Netherlands

Rotterdam: Heavy fog suspended ship and gate operations at terminals this week. As the terminals recover, some delays can be expected.

Contract negotiations continue for workers at ECT. Carriers report an impact on operations as workers are not working overtime. Additionally, cranes are out of order at this terminal, impacting productivity. Barge and feeder handling is experiencing delays of over 72 hours.

United Kingdom

London Gateway: The port has been working through a busy vessel lineup using additional labour. This is reflected in the improvement in the waiting times. However, the lineup remains full, with vessels arriving off-window.

Middle East Africa

Benin

Cotonou: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2 days.

Djibouti

Djibouti: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 4.33 days. 

Ghana

Tema: The average 7-day vessel waiting time is around 2.39 days. 

Guinea

Conakry: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 3 days.

Libya

Benghazi: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 8.75 days.

Mozambique

Beira: Vessels can wait up to 17 days for a berth. Strong winds are forecast for 21 and 22 January. 

Maputo: Vessels can wait up to 4 days for a berth due to congestion.

Republic of the Congo

Pointe Noire: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 4.38 days. 

South Africa

Durban: Vessels at Pier 4 can wait up to 8 days and at Pier 1, up to 6 days.

Port Elizabeth: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 2.5 days. Delays due to strong winds are expected from 21 to 22 January.

Tanzania

Dar Es Salaam: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 3.83 days. 

The Gambia

Banjul: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 7.33 days. 

North America

Canada

Average rail dwell times for Canadian cargo:

• Prince Rupert: 7 days
• Vancouver: 10 days
• Halifax: 14 days
• Montreal: 14 days.
• Saint John: 10 days

USA

Average rail dwell times for US cargo:

• Montreal: 10 days
• Vancouver: 10 days
• Charleston: 4 days
• Houston: 12 days
• Los Angeles: 12 days
• Long Beach: 11 days
• New York: 9 days
• Norfolk: 8 days
• Savannah: 6 days

US Gulf ports Houston, Mobile, and New Orleans suspended operations on Tuesday this week due to a bitter winter storm sweeping through the region. Here are the latest updates from the ports :

• Houston: The port will remain closed on Wednesday, 22 January, but should conditions improve, vessel operations will resume by Wednesday evening. To compensate for the gate closures, Houston will open its gates on Saturday, 25 January, from 07:00 to 17:00 local time.

• Mobile: Mobile expects to resume operations on Thursday, 23 January, at 07:00 local time, weather permitting.

• New Orleans: The Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal and its gates will remain closed on Wednesday, January 22, 2025, until conditions improve. Additionally, the New Orleans Public Belt Railroad (NOPB) has temporarily discontinued rail service until weather conditions allow normal operations.

East Coast ports Savannah, Charleston and Norfolk also announced closures for Wednesday as follows:

• Charleston: SC Port terminals will be closed to trucks on Wednesday, 22 January, and expect to reopen on 23 January.

• Norfolk: According to an advisory from the Port of Virginia, its marine terminals and support facilities (NIT, VIG, PPCY, PCY and RSA) truck gates will be closed on Wednesday, January 22nd. RMT and VIP truck gates will remain open on Wednesday.

• Savannah: Truck gates at Garden City and Ocean terminal closed at 16:00 local time yesterday, 21 January. Garden City truck gates are expected to reopen at 13:00 local time on Wednesday, 22 January, weather-dependent, while Ocean Terminal will remain closed on Wednesday.

• Wilmington: The gates at both the Port of Wilmington and the Port of Morehead City will remain closed today, 22 January. NC Ports expects to resume normal operations at both locations at 13:00 local time on Thursday, 23 January.

In the Midwest, frigid temperatures and dangerous conditions have also restricted container transport. Delays in container pick-up and delivery have been reported in several locations, including St.Louis, Chicago, and Minneapolis.

South and Central America

Mexico

Altamira: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1 day. Terminal appointments require 12-24 hours. Imports rail delays improved from 72 hours to 48 hours.

Ensenada: There is currently no waiting time at the port and operations are running normally. However, terminal appointments need to be made 24-48 hours in advance.

Lazaro Cardenas: Intermodal availability is limited due to high volumes, but the situation has improved over the last weeks. For imports, truck assignments require 120 hours, while rail assignments have a delay of 96 hours.

Manzanillo: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1.1 days. Higher import volumes compared to export volumes limit truck availability. Truck assignments take 48-96 hours. Rail requires 72 hours for import assignments and 96 hours for exports.

Progreso: The 7-day average vessel waiting time is around 1 day. Operations are normal. Terminal appointments require 48-hour notice.

Veracruz: There is currently no waiting time at the port. High demand and truck shortages are causing road movements to be delayed. Terminal appointments can only be made 24 hours in advance.

How does Kuehne+Nagel calculate the average vessel waiting time? 

Mainline container vessels may spend a certain number of days waiting at designated anchorage areas before their scheduled port call. 

We calculate the average waiting time based on these days, excluding:  

• waiting times for feeder vessels,  
• idle ships without an announced next port,  
• slow steamers heading toward the anchorage but not actively waiting within the designated area and 
• vessels passing through the anchorage area without intending to call at the port 

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