The Irish Maritime Development Office (IMDO) has published a document on its website entitled “Be Prepared for Brexit, ACT and Prepare to Switch”. The purpose is to alert exporters and importers to the possible risks to their Supply Chain for goods moving to and from Continental Europe where that Supply Chain relies on use of the British Landbridge.
Traders should examine their Supply Chains and assess how direct services meet their needs. The document includes listings and maps of direct regular Ro-Ro and Lo-Lo services currently operating from Irish ports and advises traders to contact the service providers of the most appropriate routes either directly or through their Forwarding Agent. Doing this will verify how well the chosen service will meet their needs. These communications will also enable the service providers to more fully assess the likely extra capacity demand.
IMDO further advises that shippers should trial new direct shipping options at the earliest opportunity and certainly well in advance of 31 December when Border Controls come fully into play for traffic moving through Britain. It is especially important if:
- Your Supply chain needs a lead-in time to make alternative shipping arrangements;
- Your product or inputs are time-sensitive;
- Customs procedures could cause unmanageable delays and costs to your business;
- There is a risk to your business in switching routes and this needs to be trialed and problems sorted out well in advance.
The IMDO document can be accessed at: https://www.imdo.ie/Home/site-area/news-events/be-prepared-brexit-act-and-prepare-switch.
In addition to the Lo-Lo services listed:
- Independent Container Lines (ICL) operates a weekly Antwerp/Cork service.
- Containerships will add a Dunkirk call to their Cork/Rotterdam/Dublin/Cork service from 19 November.
CLdN have committed to adding extra capacity anticipated traffic needs on their Ireland/Benelux services. Howard Knott