Maersk ship to skip Vancouver call over congestion and delays The Clementine Maersk will skip the port of Vancouver, British Columbia, in its current rotation, citing congestion and “significant” delays following the CMA CGM Attila’s striking of the dock two days ago. The Maersk Line vessel will shift cargo bound for the Canadian gateway to the CMA CGM La Scala. Canadian media reports that two Transportation Safety Board officials are investigating the Aug. 28 incident where CMA CGM Attila hit the quayside at DP World’s Centerm terminal. The extent of the damage is not known. Maersk Line said in a statement that all export cargo booked on the Clementine Maersk will be rolled to CMA CGM La Scala, which will arrive in Vancouver on Sept. 15. Imported cargo for Canada will be discharged from Clementine Maersk in Seattle and transhipped to CMA CGM La Scala, and all other Canadian and U.S.-bound cargo will be discharged in Seattle and railed to Chicago. Concerns over U.S. West Coast labor negotiations have resulted in strong growth at Canada’s West Coast ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert. Port Metro Vancouver jumped 4.7 percent to 1.4 million TEUs from January through June, and Prince Rupert Port moved 281,074 TEUs, 6.5 percent more than the same period in 2013. The rising container volumes saw DP World Vancouver announcing in early August it would stop accepting U.S.-bound containers intended for direct transfer to rail, citing a lack of railcars to handle the surge of cargo headed across the border. Port Metro Vancouver has been leveraging its advantages as a gateway to the U.S., including weekly ocean services by most of the major carriers in the trans-Pacific, and intermodal service by both the CN and CP railroads. Prince Rupert, by contrast, is served only by Cosco and its partners in the CKYH Alliance. Also, CN is the only railroad with service to and from Prince Rupert. Last year, Prince Rupert’s total container volume declined about 5 percent versus 2012, while Vancouver’s increased 4 percent. Prince Rupert Port moved 281,074 TEUs i the first half, 6.5 percent more than the same period in 2013. The three major Port Metro Vancouver terminals saw their productivity performance slip in the first quarter, according to JOC Group Port Productivity Data. Deltaport averaged 53 total berth moves per hour (measured between lines down and lines up) in the first three months of the year, a decline from 66 in the same period in 2013. Vanterm averaged 49 moves per hour in the first quarter, down from 78 in the first quarter of 2013. Centerm’s productivity declined from 62 moves an hour in the first quarter of 2013 to 56 moves per hour in first-quarter 2014. JOC NEWS - AUG 30 2014
Posted on: Sun, 31 Aug 2014 16:29:40 +0000