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FMC Commissioner Doyle hits out at congestion surchargesFMC Commissioner Doyle hits out at congestion surcharges

US Federal Maritime Commissioner William Doyle says lines should not be adding congestion surcharges under “any circumstance”.

Marcus Hand, Editor

November 20, 2014

1 Min Read
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In a statement on amendments to the Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (TSA) and port congestion Doyle said that lines had forced ports around the world to react to their business model of building larger vessels.

He noted that only five years ago an 8,000 teu vessel calling at a US port was an uncommon event, but today vessels of up to 14,000 teu were calling at US West Coast ports. While US ports were spending billions of dollars to upgrade their facilities, “The larger ships have come onto the market quicker than the ports can react by way of construction and upgrading, thereby, significantly exacerbating port congestion by unloading ever larger volumes of containers.”

As congestion has worsened with labour unrest issues in the US member lines of the TSA have started rolling out congestion surcharges of up to $1,000 per feu from Asia to the US.

“I believe the ocean carriers should not be adding surcharges for port congestion under any circumstance now or into the foreseeable future for imports or exports.  Indeed, the ocean carriers have a substantial hand in the formation of port congestion matters,” he stated.

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About the Author

Marcus Hand

Editor

Marcus Hand is the editor of Seatrade Maritime News and a dedicated maritime journalist with over two decades of experience covering the shipping industry in Asia.

Marcus is also an experienced industry commentator and has chaired many conferences and round tables. Before joining Seatrade at the beginning of 2010, Marcus worked for the shipping industry journal Lloyd's List for a decade and before that the Singapore Business Times covering shipping and aviation.

In November 2022, Marcus was announced as a member of the Board of Advisors to the Singapore Journal of Maritime Talent and Technology (SJMTT) to help bring together thought leadership around the key areas of talent and technology.

Marcus is the founder of the Seatrade Maritime Podcast that delivers commentary, opinions and conversations on shipping's most important topics.

Conferences & Webinars

Marcus Hand regularly moderates at international maritime events. Below you’ll find a list of selected past conferences and webinars.

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