BG Freight slams UK light dues tariff increase
SHORTSEA operator BG Freight Line has warned that the UK’s revised light
dues charges will leave the country “totally at the mercy of its proactive,
forward-thinking, progressive European partners”.
The UK representative of Rotterdambased BG Freight Line, John Hie, was
speaking on the eve of yesterday’s tariff increase, which saw the price go up
from £0.35 to £0.39 per net registered tonne, followed by a second increase to
£0.43 next April.
Mr Hie, addressing a Navigatorsponsored Short Sea Congress audience
in Liverpool, said that BG Freight, owned by the Peel Ports Group, would
see the light dues cost rise 58% from £4,885 ($8,032) to £7,716 by next year
for a 366 teu, 1,994 gt vessel.
“That is ridiculous. Nobody is going to give us a 58% increase on anything.
It is outrageous that we have to pay this increase,” said Mr Hie.
“The UK and Ireland are the only two countries in northwestern Europe
that charge light dues. The UK’s three closest trading partners, France,
Holland and Belgium, do not charge light dues.
“Why don’t they charge light dues? Because they do not want to prejudice
the commercial operations within their port community.”
In an impassioned speech that reflected the mood of earlier speakers,
Mr Hie said: “I have a quote from the minister that we will be paying no more
than what we were paying in 1996, a 43% reduction.
“That is crazy — we cannot sell our freight for that, we cannot pay our salaries
for that on 1994/1996 rates.”
He continued: “I am very passionate about this issue. This is not just for containerships,
but for tankers, for cruiseships and for offshore vessels.”
Mr Hie said that it costs €80,000 ($112,525) a fortnight in fixed costs to
operate one of his vessels.
He also gave the comparable figures for light dues charges on a large container
operator calling in the UK. He said that the cost of a nine-vessel
loop for a far east carrier would go up by 40%, or by £267,300 a year.
“That loop is going to cost him just over £250,000 a year, and with four
loops that means an extra £1m. Is that operator really going to pay an extra
£1m to call in the UK from next April? Who knows?”
He added: “The UK is a country that lives and breathes via its ports, and it
has always been a leader in the maritime industry. “If the UK government continues
with its plan to increase light dues on a regular basis it may find itself a country
served only by feeder vessels.”