Firms want clear transport fees

Truong Dinh Hoe, General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), expressed the support as he talked to Hai quan, an online newspaper of Vietnam Customs.

Hoe said the decree is necessary to boost transparency in seaway transport. It will make it easier for importers and exporters to select shipping companies with quality services, and better control their production and business activities.

Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Van Cong told a meeting at the ministry’s headquarters last month that charges and surcharges related to marine transport and port services were a “hot” issue, which interested many enterprises.

Importers and exporters said that shipping firms were accelerating the imposition of surcharges to compensate their costs, as transporters had to cut freights to stay competitive in the face of harsh competition.

Shipping companies were setting different levels of surcharges at their discretion without proper notifications to good owners, and this caused complaints from importers and exporters.

On April 11, Vietnam News browsed the websites of several domestic ports, including northern Hai Phong Port, central Da Nang Port and southern Cat Lai Ports looking for service charges information. Few of the websites provided charge information.

Among the minority is HCM City’s Sai Gon Port, which lists the rates for tow vessel services at between USUS$255 and US$600 per time of tow, during 2016. The port also quotes surcharges of 30% to 100% for certain towing distances.

Nam Hai Dinh Vu Port in northern Hai Phong City lists the costs for container elevation at between VND300,000 and VND640,000 (between US$13 and US$28) per container, this year. It quotes 50% to 100% surcharges for cases such as frozen or noxious goods containers, or oversize and overweight units.

Pham Kieu Oanh, Deputy General Director of HCM City-based garment firm Nha Be, told Hai quan that container elevation fees have risen by three to five% at many ports since January 1, 2016. None of the ports gave clear explanations about the increase, she said.

Hoe of VASEP said Vietnamese enterprises usually ink import contracts with the CIF (cost, insurance and freight) condition, and export contracts with the FOB (free on board) condition. Foreign partners are mainly responsible for shipping phases.

Although CIF and FOB are international shipping routines, Vietnamese firms don’t have clear knowledge of shipping surcharges nor can they negotiate the surcharges.

Deputy Minister Cong said as these issues impact on production and business activities of domestic enterprises, and that this matter has been mentioned in the revised Maritime Code 2015, the decree should be issued soon.

According to Hai quan, a draft decree is already available and stipulates the reponsibility and contents for marine transport and port companies to publicise their charges and surcharges on their websites, as well as the Vietnam Maritime Administration’s.

Hoe suggested that the decree should also stipulate sanctions for violators of the regulations.