Euro Port Delays Disrupting Schedules
Delays at European ports have been disrupting our schedules recently, in particular the queues to unload vessels at the Port of Hamburg.
The German port, which like many other European ports has been struggling with congestion since the pandemic, has also been heavily disrupted by a series of labour strikes over recent months. The recent strike at Felixstowe has also contributed to the problems at European ports, with many containers destined for the UK being offloaded at continental ports.
The Port of Hamburg is extremely important to Latin American trade lanes, amongst others, as vessels loop around North European ports as well as the UK. Some services, such as the West Coast South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Chile), are seeing transit times being extended between 7 and 12 days, as vessels wait to enter the German port following the call at London Gateway.
With volumes from Asia to Europe starting to drop off, we are hopeful that this will give European ports much needed respite and the opportunity to start clearing the congestion in the coming weeks. However, there are further obstacles in the pipeline, with Liverpool due to strike this month and the Felixstowe dispute not concluded yet.
As part of our commitment to high service levels, Envío work hard to put together our sailing schedules on a monthly basis, which we share via email and on this website. Therefore, it’s frustrating for us to see vessels and products delayed for reasons beyond our control.
We are monitoring the situation closely and will update any major developments. Should you require further information on the above, then please do not hesitate to contact us.
