EUROPE/AFRICA CARRIERS ADD CONGO RIVER CHARGE
Shipping lines of the Europe West Africa Trade Agreement said they will introduce a Congo river surcharge for European shipments to and from Matadi, Boma and Banana, in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“Due to a dramatic decrease of the draft of the Congo river, Europe West Africa Trade Agreement members are experiencing substantial extra costs,” a spokesman for the Europe/West Africa conference said.
The conference said its carriers have no other alternative than to introduce the surcharge.
The surcharge, effective Feb. 15, will be 200 euro/'136 ($201) per TEU for containerized cargo or 8 euro/'5 ($7) per freight ton for conventional cargo.
The carriers of the Europe/West Africa conference are Maersk Sealand, Nile Dutch Africa Line, P&O Nedlloyd, Safmarine and West Afrika Linien.