Widespread congestion stemming from construction, weather, and unrest has continued to affect ports across Africa, with several ports in the region reporting elevated average wait times.
Officials in Uganda cut internet services ahead of the country’s presidential election on January 15, which led the Port of Mombasa, Kenya, to suspend all cargo operations for goods destined to Uganda or other inland destinations in Africa. The port also experienced disruptions from a port workers’ strike on January 9, which led to operational disruptions as workers demanded changes to the fee structure for empty containers.
On January 14, strong winds disrupted operations at the Port of Durban, South Africa, causing terminal operations to go into standby mode and rail operations to be completely suspended.
In Asia, the majority of ports are reporting stable operations without significant delays or congestion.
Weather conditions have led to several disruptions, including flooding on January 12 that impacted operations at the Port of Tanjung Priok, Indonesia. Access roads and infrastructure surrounding the port were impacted, forcing around 1,600 logistics firms to halt operations as trucks were stranded.
Operations are also stable in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, with low wait times at many ports.
Port operations were disrupted on January 16 at the Port of Karachi, Pakistan, due to a fire in the container terminals. Over 20 containers were impacted, and the fire forced the suspension of handling operations for two vessels.
In Europe, Everstream Analytics has tracked 16 port disruption incidents in the region since the beginning of January, highlighting operational challenges for many ports.
Inclement winter weather has exacerbated the challenges with the Port of Gdańsk, Poland; the Port of Bremerhaven, Germany; the Port of Antwerp, Belgium; the Port of Rotterdam, Netherlands; and the Port of Hamburg, Germany, all experiencing operational disruptions due to winter weather since January 1. In the Americas, congestion is relatively mild, with only a few ports reporting significant levels of congestion.
Regional Summaries
Africa
Widespread congestion and delays are affecting ports in Africa. The highest average wait times in the region were recorded at the Port of Conakry, Guinea, with averages of 13 days, according to Kuehne + Nagel, and a maximum wait time for anchored vessels as high as 30 days.
Average wait times at the Port of Beira, Mozambique, also remain at heightened levels and currently stand at 12.5 days according to data from Kuehne + Nagel.
Congestion at the Port of Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, has decreased slightly to 5.3 days on average, according to Kuehne + Nagel.
The Port of Casablanca, Morocco, is facing average wait times of 6.5 days according to data from Kuehne + Nagel, and the elevated congestion levels are impacting schedules, according to Hapag-Lloyd.
The Port of Mombasa, Kenya, continues to be affected by long-term congestion with equipment shortages and high-transshipment volumes leading to average wait times of 4.5 days, according to Kuehne + Nagel.
In addition, the Port of Cape Town, South Africa, is experiencing average wait times of 8 days, according to Kuehne + Nagel, due to high winds that have led to the suspension of terminal operations. Hapag-Lloyd expects weather disruptions to continue through February.
Asia & Oceania
Average wait times across the region of Asia and Oceania are largely positive, with only a few ports experiencing average wait times above 1.5 days.
Port Klang, Malaysia, is experiencing the highest wait times of any port in the region, with average wait times of 2.7 days, according to Kuehne + Nagel, while Hapag-Lloyd reported heavy berth congestion at the West port and feeder delays.
The Port of Qingdao, China, is facing average wait times of 1.5 days, according to Kuehne + Nagel, with vessel bunching and high winds contributing to the delays, according to Hapag-Lloyd.
Kuehne + Nagel is reporting average wait times of 2 days at the Port of Shanghai, China, with vessel bunching a driver of the delays.
Reefer constraints are leading to higher wait times at the Port of Manila, Philippines, with average wait times reported at 2.7 days according to data from Everstream Analytics.
The Port of Ningbo, China, is experiencing average wait times of 1.5 days according to data from Kuehne + Nagel, with a very high yard density.
Middle East & South Asia
In the Middle East and South Asia, ports have largely recovered from recent disruptions and are experiencing very low average wait times on the whole.
Ports in Israel are experiencing the highest average wait times in the region, with the Port of Ashdod reporting 1.7 days of wait time on average and the Port of Haifa reporting 2.3 days of wait time on average, according to Kuehne + Nagel. Both ports are operating under emergency contingency plans with some restrictions on cargo operations.
The Port of Colombo, Sri Lanka, is reporting 1.4 days of average wait times, according to Kuehne + Nagel. Hapag-Lloyd expects that delays for vessel berthing will continue for several weeks due to inclement weather impacts.
The Port of Bandar Abbas, Iran, is experiencing average wait times of 2 days, according to data from Everstream Analytics.
Kuehne + Nagel reports that the Port of Salalah, Oman, is experiencing average wait times of 1.7 days.
Europe
Across Europe, ports are experiencing mild to elevated levels of congestion due to post-holiday recoveries and weather-related disruptions.
The Port of Ravenna, Italy, is experiencing the highest average wait times of any port in the region, with data from Everstream Analytics reporting average wait times of 4.6 days.
The Port of Bremerhaven, Germany, is experiencing average wait times of 3.8 days, according to Kuehne + Nagel. Hapag-Lloyd reported minor disruptions to operations due to fog and disruptions from holiday closures.
In Italy, the Port of Venice, Italy, is experiencing average wait times of 3.3 days, according to data from Everstream Analytics.
The Port of Barcelona, Spain, is experiencing average wait times of 3.1 days according to Everstream Analytics. Hapag-Lloyd reported that congestion is occurring across all terminals.
The Port of Gothenburg, Sweden, experienced a full operational halt recently as a result of snowfall, according to Hapag-Lloyd; however, no significant average wait times were reported.
Americas
On the whole, average wait times in North America are stable, with low levels of congestion reported.
The Port of Prince Rupert, Canada, is experiencing the highest average wait time in North America, with average wait times of 3 days according to data from Kuehne + Nagel, with average rail dwell times of 7 days.
Kuehne + Nagel reports that average wait times at the Port of Houston, United States, are at 2.9 days, with Hapag-Lloyd reporting that a crane outage is leading to congestion.
Hapag-Lloyd reports that weather and holiday-related vessel delays have disrupted some operations at the Port of New York, which is experiencing average wait times of 1.9 days, according to Kuehne + Nagel.
The Port of Savannah, United States, is reporting average wait times of 1.8 days according to Kuehne + Nagel, with fog-related river closures impacting import dwell times according to Hapag-Lloyd.
Average wait times stand at 1.7 days at the Port of Montreal, Canada, according to Kuehne + Nagel, with Hapag-Lloyd reporting that weather-related delays have caused service disruptions.
Ports in South America are experiencing slightly elevated levels of congestion, with the Port of San Antonio, Chile, experiencing the highest average wait times at 3.6 days, according to data from Everstream Analytics.
The Port of Buenaventura, Colombia, is experiencing average wait times of 3 days, according to data from Everstream Analytics.
The Port of Navegantes, Brazil, is experiencing average wait times of 3 days, while the Port of Itapoá, Brazil, is experiencing average wait times of 2 days, according to Kuehne + Nagel. In addition, the Port of Paranaguá, Brazil, and the Port of Santos, Brazil, are each experiencing average wait times of 2 days, according to data from Everstream Analytics.
Everstream clients are receiving more detailed insights and recommendations about this risk.
Don’t miss key supply chain risk updates! Subscribe now to get supply chain news, weather updates, forecasts, and other insights.