Congestion problems at Felixstowe, which are regularly resulting in restitution issues and delays, have led to more pressure at base European ports.
Following recent events, Maersk Line advised that their larger vessels would not be calling at Felixstowe for the time being and would instead discharge vessels at already congested European ports, then use smaller feeder vessels to move containers to the UK.
The carrier is not alone in reducing or ‘rationalising’ port calls within their schedules and this practice is adding further pressure to overburdened North European ports.
Additionally, space has become over subscribed on feeder vessels and with UK containers reportedly starting to pile up on the continent, onward journeys to the UK are being delayed.
Concerns are mounting that we may see a similar position to last year’s busy retail season. UK port congestion led to many vessels omitting the UK at the back end of 2020, with hundreds of containers being stranded in Europe over the Christmas period.
Our team continue to work extremely hard in trying to mitigate any supply chain disruption during these challenging times. Should you require further information regarding the above, then please do not hesitate to contact us.
At Westbound Logistics we pride ourselves in offering personalised and tailored logistics solutions. To find out more please call 01375 800800 or email info@westboundglobal.com.
