The ongoing war between Israel and Hamas continues to affect the flow of freight through the Mediterranean Sea and surrounding areas, as maritime container carriers adjust their fees and deadlines.
Ocean freight carrier Hapag-Lloyd AG this week said it plans to add a War Risk Surcharge (WRS) for shipments both from and to Israel beginning January 1 for all containers and cargo types. The German company will add $40 per twenty foot equivalent unit (TEU) for exports and imports on its Intra-Mediterranean and North Europe routes, and $80 per TEU for all other origins and destinations.
Likewise, the Israeli cargo carrier Zim in November added a war risk premium (WRP) surcharge for cargo moving to and from Israel, as compensation for the increased war risk insurance premiums that insurers have imposed on all vessels calling Israeli ports.
The changes follow a terrorist attack by Hamas fighters in Israel on October 7 and a subsequent bombardment and occupation by Israel of territories in the Gaza Strip region of Palestine. That violence initially caused cancellations and delays of certain air and ocean cargo routes in the region.
In reaction to those pressures, the Geneva, Switzerland-based ocean freight line MSC had “stopped the clock” in October on detention and demurrage (D&D) for import containers discharged in the Israeli ports of Ashdod and Haifa. Originally frozen between October 8 and November 8, that policy was later extended until November 22. Container carriers often levy those charges on importers as compensation for extra storage costs for cargo that remains at the port of discharge for too long, according to supply chain visibility provider Project44.
