Maersk offers ad-hoc sailing to Jebel Ali to ease box backlog at India's Chennai Port

DENMARK's Maersk Line has started providing an ad-hoc direct sailing from India's Port of Chennai to Jebel in the Middle East, to help clear a backlog of export containers that has built up in recent weeks owing to severe terminal congestion and trucking problems at the port.

The first ship was scheduled to depart from Chennai on December 17 and arrive in Jebel Ali on December 24.

"The transit time from Chennai to Jebel Ali will be seven days. The trade is expected to benefit from this direct one-time sailing given excellent onwards connections over Jebel Ali," an unnamed Maersk India official was quoted as saying in a report by The Journal of Commerce.

It said that port truck drivers, who suddenly suspended operations twice in December, have now also agreed to call off their action in response to repeated requests from the port chairman.

"The issues pertaining to road improvements and the opening of additional entry-exit gates for truck movements have been taken up with appropriate authorities for immediate remedy," the chairman was quoted as telling truckers' representatives.

An official from DP World Chennai, which operates one of the port's two container terminals, said the opening of an extra exit gate during night hours will help ease traffic congestion "considerably," the report said.

By the middle of December the terminal yard inventory was reported to have held more than 15,000 containers, mostly imports, according to officials in the Traffic Department.
(Source:www.schednet.com)