Effective from the 19th August 2019, there will be increases to the Hutchison Ports Brisbane Infrastructure Fee, and the Patrick Terminals Brisbane VBS Fee. The Hutchison Infrastructure Fee will increase from $45.00 + GST to $60.00 + GST, whilst the Patricks VBS Fee will increase from $22.50 + GST to $28.00 + GST. Please note that these increases will result in pricing changes to your container invoices effective from this date.

As of 1 September 2019, Melbourne empty dehire timeslot fees are increasing by $15. If you have any queries regarding the increase, please don't hesitate to contact our transport department on 1300 TOMAX.

Unfortunately the ANL Gippsland 037N was involved in an incident associated with Typhoon Lekima that struck the coast of China over the weekend and impacted heavily in the vicinity of Shanghai.

The ANL Gippsland, which was berthed at Shanghai conducting cargo operations was ordered off the berth when the Port of Shanghai authorities closed the port and ordered all berthed vessels out to sea to ride out the typhoon.

Meanwhile, the ANL Gippsland was sailing to a designated shelter area off the Shanghai coast where she encountered very heavy weather and sea conditions which caused damage to both the vessel and several containers onboard.

Reports have confirmed that several containers have been washed overboard from the vessel and are lost at sea. At this stage the damage to the vessel does not appear to be significant and the Master has maintained that the vessel is seaworthy.

The incident is still under investigation and the vessel is currently on its way back to Shanghai port for assessment of the loss and damage to the containers onboard. We will keep clients updated as information comes to hand.

On 1 June 2018, the YM Efficiency lost 81 containers in heavy weather about 30 kilometres southeast of Newcastle.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority(AMSA) are taking steps to recover shipping containers lost overboard from the vessel. It has opened a tender for salvage and offshore construction operators to remove containers for safe disposal on land. The closing date for tenders is 19 September, with the clean-up expected to begin early next year.

The successful operator will work closely with AMSA to mitigate any identified risks to the marine environment.

AMSA and NSW Maritime will host public information sessions to give members of the community an opportunity to learn more about the salvage operation and how they will be managing waste.

The MSC Gulsun, the world's largest container vessel made its maiden voyage through the New Suez Canal. The Panamanian ship transited the Canal with the northbound convoy, heading to North Western Europe from the Port of Xingang, China.

The ship stands at 400 metres in length and a beam of 61.4 metres, which is a little under the 62.1-metre maximum permissible beam in the Suez Canal, a draught of 16 metres, and a gross tonnage of 232,000 tonnes.

The MSC Gulsun is of the Megamax 24 class with the ability to stack 24 rows of containers on board as opposed to the previous class Megamax 23 with a capacity ranging from 18,000 to 20,000 TEU, and only 23 rows of containers.

Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority and Suez Canal Economic Zone, Admiral Mohab Mameesh boarded the vessel to welcome the crew and saw to it that the vessel transited safely, as well as offering all the navigational safety measures. And as per Suez Canal Authority custom, on receiving mega vessels transiting for the first time, the Admiral Mameesh presented the ship’s master with a bouquet of flowers, the Suez Canal Authority’s shield and wished him and the crew a safe trip and a smooth transit.

The mega vessel is one of MSC’s largest vessels. It is the first of its kind at 23,756 TEU, and among 11 vessels the shipping line has had under construction at the Samsung and Daewoo South Korean shipyards since 2017. The vessels are set to connect Asia and Northern Europe via the Suez Canal as part of the AE 10/SILK service in collaboration with Maersk.

After several incidents such as the fire on the Yantian Express back in January, several ocean carriers have announced new hefty fines for misdeclaring hazardous cargo.

Hapag-Lloyd recently announced it would levy a US$15,000 fine for misdeclared hazardous cargo, and said it would hold the shipper liable for all costs and consequences related to violations, fines, damages, incidents, claims and corrective measures resulting from undeclared or misdeclared cargoes.

A statement from the company said it was in the overall interest of safe operation onboard.

“Failure to properly offer and declare hazardous cargoes prior to shipment is a violation of the Hazardous Material Regulations,” the statement said.

“Such violations may be subject to monetary fines and/or criminal prosecution under applicable law.”

Leading transport and logistics insurer TT Club, has welcomed such initiatives. The insurer said it had growing concerns about the sloppy cargo packing practices and erroneous, sometimes fraudulent, declaration of cargoes. TT Club risk management director Peregrine Storrs-Fox said it was clear the shipper has primary responsibility to declare fully and honestly so the carriers are able to take appropriate actions to achieve safe transport.

“Since this is not always the case, carriers have to put in place increasingly sophisticated and costly control mechanisms to ‘know their customers’, screen booking information and physically inspect shipments,” he said.

“Equally, carriers have the opportunity to review any barriers to accurate shipment declaration, including minimising any unnecessary restrictions and surcharges.

“Penalising shippers where deficiencies are found should be applauded. Furthermore, government enforcement agencies are encouraged to take appropriate action under national or international regulations to deter poor practices further.”