SURAT : The dispute over an extra levy planned by Adani Hazira Port Pvt Ltd has been resolved with the three older container freight stations (CFSs) servicing Hazira Port agreeing to abide by a new service level agreement to evacuate containers nominated by the shipping lines within specific days, subject to charges on deviation per the prevailing terminal tariff.

The window would be fixed at 6 days for export and 4 days for import to clear the (lines) nominated containers at Hazira Port. In case, the CFS’s fail to clear cargo during the agreed period, it would be liable to pay the charges as per terminal tariff, according to a revised advisory issued by Adani Hazira Port on Friday to settle the vexed issue.

In a 25 August Customer Advisory, Adani Hazira Port said it will collect extra charges of Rs 2,500 for a 20 ft container and Rs 4,000 for 40 ft and 45 ft boxes from CFS operators when import loaded containers are taken to a CFS as nominated by the shipping lines. Adani Hazira Port also asked the CFS operators to maintain a Pre-Deposit Account (PDA) balance at the terminal from 8 September to facilitate invoicing CFS’s nomination charges for the import laden box.

From 10 September, Adani Hazira Port stopped delivering import laden containers to the CFSs servicing the port. The move to levy extra charges was strongly opposed by the CFS’s and other stakeholders, including importers, using Hazira Port to ship cargo.

“Adani Hazira Port has started delivering shipping lines nominated import laden containers to the CFS’s from Friday after the standoff was resolved in consultation with all the stakeholders,” a source said. The port operator issued a revised advisory to resolve the issue.

According to the revised advisory, the CFS’s run by Hind Terminals Pvt Ltd, Seabird Marine Services Pvt Ltd and Kribhco Infrastructure Ltd (owned by Dubai’s D P World Ltd) who have been operating at Hazira for long “would abide by the new service level agreement to evacuate nominated containers within specific days, subject to charges on deviation as per the prevailing terminal tariff, as amended from time to time”.

“This would ensure that there is no additional cost to trade as apprehended by the stakeholders. It would help in catering to increased volumes through better efficiency and reduction in unproductive cost,” Adani Hazira Port, a unit of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) wrote in the advisory.