CPA, shippers at loggerheads

An abrupt imposition of rents on containers has sparked a row between the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) and the shipping firms.
The CPA has slapped the rents on import-containers meant for Dhaka Inland Container Depot (ICD) at Kamalapur in the capital.
The CPA's latest rents that have led to the shooting up of costs by at least US$ 130 for each twenty-foot-equivalent unit (TEU) container came into effect from Sunday last (February 16).
The shipping firms have protested the step saying they will recover the extra rents from the traders if the authorities do not withdraw the same.
They said the port authority had imposed the new rents with the motive of making Pangaon container terminal a functional one. The terminal has remained non-functional since November last.
Before imposition of the latest rents, shipping firms used to pay fixed charges worth US$ 10 as transit fees for each 20-foot container unit up to Dhaka ICD.
Shamim-Ul Huq, vice chairman of Bangladesh Container Shipping Association (BCSA), told the FE that they would wait for at least a few days more for response from the port authority.
"We've sent our protest letter on February 16 last, and we'll wait for a few days more for reply," Mr. Huq, also managing director at Maersk Line, the largest shipping firm in the world in terms of vessels.
Mr. Huq said: "If the port authority does not withdraw it, we'll recover the same from the trades."
If the shipping firms adjust the new rents with the traders, it will make the imported goods' delivery from Dhaka costlier, sources said.
Around 10 per cent of total imports are meant for Dhaka's Kamalapur inland container depot.
The BCSA expressed its members' grave concern to the CPA in relation to the decision of imposing grounding rents on Dhaka ICD-bound imports-laden containers.
When contacted, Sarwar Alam, director (traffic) at CPA, told the FE over phone that the shipping firms now have a close-substitute to Dhaka ICD to avoid the new rents.
"They should now use the Pangaon and its tariff will be much lower than that of Dhaka ICD," Mr. Alam said.
He added the CPA has rationalised the tariff.
On the other hand, a number of shipping firms said they would not carry Dhaka-bound cargoes if the port did not withdraw the new rents.
Sahed Sarwar, general manager of the Tokyo-based K-Line said: "We'll not carry Dhaka-bound cargoes to avoid the latest rents."
Mr. Sarwar said: "As per our past experiences, the port authority remains stubborn on their decisions. They don't bother about the sufferings of the traders."
Mr. Sarwar said: "We'll carry Dhaka-bound cargoes only after talking with the consignees concerned whether they will pay the additional costs."
Dhaka-bound cargoes comprise mostly of electronics, fruits and industrial raw materials and take 20 days on an average to reach Kamalapur by railway wagons from the port city.
Shipping sources said Dhaka ICD-bound import containers get delayed due to lack of proper arrangement and mismanagement involving CPA and Bangladesh Railway authorities.
"Passing the CPA's failure to send Dhaka-bound cargoes timely on to our shoulders will be unjustified," Mr. Sarwar, also a director of another shipping group -- Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association, said.  
The shipping firms are not using the alternative route of Pangaon arguing that ships travelling on the route lack required P&I coverage, shipping firm sources said.
They also pointed out that during monsoon the vessels might fail to give the desired services.
"We must protect our interest first. If I lose a refer-container under any circumstance, my company will lose at least $10,000," said Captain A S Chowdhury, country head of Seacon, a feeder service operator in Bangladesh.
CPA issued a notice on the issue on February 5 last.
As of February 13, there were a total 1395 import TEUs lying at Chittagong port staying for more than 213 weeks in queue waiting to be dispatched to Dhaka, port sources said.
Ahmed Karim, deputy terminal manager at Kamalapur ICD, an extension of CPA, said the authority has slapped the rents considering its growing losses on account of large numbers of Dhaka-bound cargoes at the port.
"We're incurring losses worth Tk 150 million each year for not imposing the rents. I think the authority has rightly imposed the rents," Mr. Karim said.