Kathmandu, January 25

Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) — the largest private sector umbrella body of the country — had sought the support of Association of Shipping Interest in Calcutta (ASIC) and Container Shipping Line Association, Mumbai to stop the detention meter on 800 containers that have already reached Kolkata. Shipping liners have refused to accept the empty containers that reached Kolkata a month back without submission of payable detention of around 40 days.

The containers were detained in the country for much longer than the grace period provided by shipping liners due to unfavourable situation caused by the border blockade organised by Madhes-based political parties, which started in last week of September. While freight forwarding companies and traders have repeatedly asked shipping liners to show consideration, the latter have kept the detention meter running.

To resolve the issue related to high demurrage and detention charges accrued due to the border blockade, a delegation of FNCCI, led by its Vice President Dinesh Shrestha, recently held a meeting with ASIC and Nepal Clearing Agents’ Association (NCAA) — an association of Indian Customs House Agents (CHAs) which clears Nepal-bound cargoes.

The FNCCI delegation had also requested the ASIC, which is the association of the shipping liners based in Kolkata, for consideration in detention and demurrage charges levied by the shipping liners on all Nepal-bound freight that arrived at Kolkata in between August to November.

Particularly in the case of 800 containers, FNCCI delegation had requested ASIC to waive 75 per cent of the detention charges accrued due to difficult situation in the country.

“We have requested them to waive 75 per cent of total charges till date,” said Rajan Sharma, president of Nepal Freight Forwarders’ Association, adding that if the shipping liners were willing to accept the containers on the date they reached Kolkata (around a month back), they were willing to settle for waiver of 35 to

40 per cent.

Sharma, who also chairs the Road, Transport and Transit Committee of FNCCI, was also part of the delegation.

“Traders are compelled to dish out $75 to $140 each day till the shipping liners acknowledge they have received the containers.”

In the meeting with ASIC in Kolkata, which was convened by consulate general of Nepal in Kolkata, representative of shipping liners — except from APL and Hanjin — agreed to waive certain per cent of detention and demurrage charges levied by them in view of the difficulties faced by Nepali importers and asked FNCCI for its proposal. FNCCI, in this regard, is preparing to send a letter to ASIC for the waiver of detention charges.

Shipping liners normally extends grace period of 21 days to return containers back to them in Kolkata once the cargo-containers are dispatched from the Kolkata Port. Similarly, Kolkata Port extends grace time of 10 and 20 days for the cargoes ferried via road and rail, respectively.

Traders and freight forwarders have to park their cargoes at the yard of private container freight stations (CFS) if they fail to release the cargoes from the port on time. They will then have to pay high rent charge to the CFS and demurrage to the shipping liners.

As Nepali traders have not submitted the detention and demurrage charges accrued due to difficult situation in the country in recent times, the shipping liners have started demanding that at least one month’s detention charges be deposited as guarantee while releasing the cargoes. The deposited amount would be returned to the consignee if the containers are returned on time, as per Sharma.

CHAs sign a bond with shipping liners on behalf of the consignee (for Nepal-bound cargoes). CHAs, then after, clear all the procedures — customs transit declaration and others — of the Nepal-bound cargoes. At present, the CHAs have been pressurising Nepali traders and freight forwarders to pay demurrage and detention charges, and have reportedly even threatened not to release the cargoes until the due fees are cleared.

Sharma has suggested the importers to negotiate with the main suppliers at the origin for at least 35 days of grace time for containers (from shipping liners) and mandatorily mention it on bill of lading so that freight forwarders can avoid such problems.

“The destination office of the shipping liner does not have the power to extend additional free time on top of the free time initially reflected in bill of lading without approval from load port,” Sharma said.