Few months after stakeholders in the Nigerian maritime industry kicked against imposition of surcharges on cargoes destined for Nigeria, one of the shipping lines; CMA CGM Shipping has imposed a fresh surcharge on goods coming to the country.
Called “Empty Equipment Imbalance Charge”, the shipping firm said in a notice last week that, collection of the new fees take effect from January 1, 2021.
The notice which was obtained by our correspondent last week, stated that it is collectable on all cargoes destined for Nigeria from East Mediterranean, Black Sea and North Africa.
The notice reads in part: “Please find the Empty Equipment Imbalance Charge applicable as follows as from January 1st, 2021 until further notice”
It added that, the surcharge is US$180 or EUR 150 per container and it is prepaid in addition to ocean freight cost.
The shipping company had also last week, exempted Nigeria from payment of the controversial Peak Season Surcharge(PSS).
Curiously, the new PSS of US$180 or EUR 150 per container is collectable on containers from the same East Mediterranean, Black Sea and North Africa to West Africa, the route from which the new “Empty Equipment Imbalance charge” is payable by Nigeria.
The new fee is also collectable from January 1, 2021.
Shipping Position Daily recalls that, maritime industry stakeholders and the organised private sector (OPS) had in August 2020, unanimously kicked against the imposition of the Peak Season Surcharge by multinational shipping firms.
Led by the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC),stakeholders such as: Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Nigerian Association of Chamber of Commerce Industry Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), and other in the shipping community, had formed a common front to resist the arbitrary charges imposed by Cosco, Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM, Hapag Lloyd and Evergreen Shipping.
The Nigerian Shippers Council was to follow it up with a letter written to the European Community Shippers Association (ECSA) on behalf of the Nigerian government, describing the surcharges as economic sabotage.
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