Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has announced that all cargo bound for ports in the Gulf will be immediately offloaded at the nearest safe seaport.
Driven by ongoing hostilities in the Middle East, the world’s largest ocean carrier has officially issued an “End of Voyage” declaration for these shipments.
The Geneva based carrier confirmed in a customer advisory that this drastic measure also applies to empty containers that have already been released for loading and were intended for export to Gulf ports.
This route deviation places a heavy and immediate financial burden directly on shippers.
- Deviation Surcharge: MSC is applying a mandatory $800 per container surcharge to all affected shipments, without exception, to cover the carrier’s deviation costs.
- Onward Logistics: Lars Jensen, CEO of Vespucci Maritime, noted that under this declaration, customers assume full responsibility for the container once it hits the discharge port. Shippers must independently find and pay for alternate transportation and cover all local port fees.
While MSC stated it “sincerely regrets the necessity of this decision,” the carrier cited the exceptional circumstances currently beyond its control.
The regional conflict is creating severe bottlenecks at the critical Strait of Hormuz, where both oil tankers and container ships are backing up sparking fears of a spike in global fuel prices.