Container shipping majors CMA CGM and Hapag Lloyd are imposing additional freight charges after rerouting ships through the Cape of Good Hope to avoid Red Sea attacks.

PHOTO: Hapag Lloyd-operated container vessel Afif at the Burchardkai Container Terminal in the Port of Hamburg. Hapag Lloyd

Many of the world's biggest shipping firms are diverting some or most of their vessels from the Red Sea to avoid being attacked by Houthi militia.

Taking the Cape of Good Hope route instead of the Suez Canal route will add 14-24 days to travel time between Asia and Europe, according to Vortexa's head of market intelligence and analysis, Jay Maroo.

French container shipping firm CMA CGM and German container shipping company Hapag Lloyd have now announced freight surcharges in their respective "contingency plans" to cover longer trips around Africa than routes via the Suez Canal.

A brief overview of CMA CGM's surcharge fees for 20-foot dry cargo containers is shown below:

• $150 per 20-foot dry cargo container from the US East Coast & US Gulf to Asia
• $325 from North Europe to Asia
• $500 from Asia to the Mediterranean
• $1,550 between the Indian subcontinent and the Middle East and the US

The freight surcharges have been implemented from 20 December 2023 and will remain in effect until further notice, CMA CGM clarified.

Meanwhile, Hapag Lloyd’s “operational recovery surcharge” fee varies from $750 per 20-foot dry cargo container to $1,500 per 40-foot reefer container “for shipments between Arabian Gulf and Indian Subcontinent and the Red Sea, in both directions.”

These fees will be applicable from 1 January 2024 till further notice, Hapag Lloyd said.

On the other hand, Danish shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk is preparing vessels to resume transit via the Suez Canal for both eastbound and westbound directions. It also noted that despite safety measures, overall risks had not been eliminated and diversion plans will be implemented if conditions deteriorate further.

By Konica Bhatt

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