Hapag-Lloyd suspends bookings of Bangladesh-bound cargoes

Hapag-Lloyd, a German container shipping company, has decided to suspend its booking of import containers bound for Bangladesh via Singapore for a month.

The container transportation company announced on June 24 that bookings for cargo moving into Bangladesh via Singapore would not be possible for the next four weeks due to an increased backlog of containers destined for Chattogram at the transhipment port.

However, the decision is not applicable for export bound containers from Bangladesh, said Abul Kalam Azad, general manager of operations at GBX Logistics, the local agent of Hapag-Llyod.

Import cargo that has already been booked and is en route to Singapore would still be transported like before but importers can choose alternative routes, such as Colombo, for new booking, he added.

The dwell time in the Colombo port remains above 14 days, according to various sources.

"Hapag-Llyod was forced to take such a decision after facing a huge pile up of its Bangladesh-bound import cargo at Singapore port, which is choking with congestion," Azad said.

More than 3,500 Bangladesh-bound import containers being carried by the company are now sitting idle in Singapore.

This situation was caused by the increased number of import containers heading for Chattogram and reduced transport capacity among feeder operators.

Due to its failure to clear the import shipments in a timely manner, the company is having to bear tremendous storage costs at Singapore port, which charges store rent from the date of arrival if a container remains for longer than the 7-day free storage period. But the decision is temporary as the services will resume once the backlog is cleared, he added.

"We foresee a change in this situation by the last week of July and will ensure that we keep you updated on the developments," Hapag-Llyod said in its announcement.

Khairul Alam Sujan, director of the Bangladesh Freight Forwarders Association, said backlogs at the transhipment ports such as Singapore, Colombo and Port Klang have prevailed for months due to prolonged delays in shipment caused by a recent blockage at the Suez Canal.

A huge container vessel had gotten stuck at the artificial sea-level waterway for about a week in late March earlier this year.

"These ports are yet to get rid of that backlog," he added.

Sujan fears that such a temporary suspension of service by a liner operator would further add to the problems for shipping local imports.

There is already a container shortage in the global shipping sector while freight rates have been increased several times in the aftermath of Covid-19 pandemic.

"If the liner suspends booking for a month then forwarders will have to look for another liner with new agreements, which may raise the freight charge for those particular cargo," he said, adding that importers would also face delays in securing shipments.