Ningbo Port’s Status
The Meishan terminal of China’s Ningbo-Zhoushan container port, the world’s third busiest port, was closed.
Ningbo Meidong Container Terminal Corp, a subsidiary of Ningbo Zhoushan Port Company Ltd, stopped all loading and discharging services as of 03:30 local time on Wednesday. The reason for stopping the port’s working activities is the staff tested positive for COVID-19.
On the other hand, when a Covid-19 outbreak was detected in Yantian Port in late May, operations at the major export hub in southern China were interrupted by 70% for most of June. Most ports in the country now require Covid-19 testing for all crew, and ships are forced to stay at anchor until negative results are confirmed. In addition, many ports in the country require vessels that have previously docked in India to be quarantined for 14-28 days.
The closure is thought to cause a delay of 15 days to the Mediterranean and Europe. Experts point out that even a two or three days delay leaves huge problems behind. An expert makes the following assessment on the subject: “There is no free capacity in any port of the world – especially in Chinese ports – that can be used extra. The effect of the 2-3 day closure will lead to delays of up to 15 days in the Mediterranean and Europe. I liken it to the long queue due to an accident on the highway.”
ShipsGo’s Attitude
ShipsGo immediately notified hundreds of users to make them avoid any negative issues related to the Ningbo Port. We informed our users by saying, ” due to this situation, the arrival date of your shipments will be delayed.” In addition to that, we include some points in our notifications, such as; first ETD date (estimated time of departure) from Ningbo, updated ETD date, and POD date (port of delivery) are available. ShipsGo users have been prevented from a possible negative outcome by the Shipsgo tracking system and the notification emails.
