Following the imposition of an Emergency Port Congestion Surcharge announced by certain shipping lines applicable to the Port of Sydney as a result of delays at DP World, AFIF has prepared the following statement:

The recent imposition of 'surcharges' by numerous and varied entities, both on land and ocean to cover various risks and perils and costs of operating a business is becoming increasingly frustrating for the consumer and / or their service providers, namely the Forwarders, Brokers and Transport Operators, at destination.

In a competitive free market, any business has the right to reasonably increase prices to its customers, provided that in doing so it observes trade practice laws at a minimum and, ideally, is fair and reasonable. We would contend that to use the term Port Congestion Surcharge would indicate a bottleneck at 'the Port'.

The fact of this particular matter is that it is congestion at one stevedore within Port Botany. Publically declaring that a "Port Congestion" Surcharge is required and applicable, is perhaps misleading. The issue of increased costs due to delays, in our view, needs to be addressed with that operator by the individual shipping line and a variance to the stevedoring contract be made accordingly. If the line has to increase its freight rate because it uses that stevedore, so be it. Then in a free market the consumer decides which shipping line to use.

We urge members to take their own advice and make their own decisions regarding the imposition of this surcharge and its commercial impact on their business.

The attached Notices refer to this matter

ANL Notice Port Congestion Surcharge
CMA CGM PCS Sydney port Jan 2011
CMA CGM PAD Notice Jan 2011
Maersk PCS Notice December 2010

Regards