Significant delays are affecting intermodal operations at several Canadian ports due to harsh weather conditions and rail issues. Key updates include:
- Port of Halifax: Experiencing vessel delays and high rail-dwell times, averaging 18 days, with some containers delayed up to 30 days.
- Port of Saint John: Facing productivity issues due to gantry crane problems and IT disruptions, with import rail-dwell times at 11.1 days.
- Port of Montreal: Recently lifted an export embargo, with current rail-dwell times at 5.1 days, but inconsistent railcar supply remains a challenge.
- Port of Vancouver and Prince Rupert: Experiencing growing congestion due to limited access to inland rail and declining liner schedule dependability. Contributing factors include:
- Rail Restrictions: Delays of 10-14 days due to phased operating limitations.
- Terminal Capacity: 102% utilization causing berth delays of up to nine days.
- Vessel Delays: 25% of vessels awaiting a berth, some delayed for weeks.
- Schedule Interruptions: Irregular arrival times due to shipping alliance realignments.
- Berth Management Challenges: Uncertain ETAs hindering planning activities.
With all these factors in mind, current total delays are estimated to be 20 to 30 days from the originally intended arrival at the final destination.
Deringer will continue to monitor port congestion levels and share relevant updates.
Source: Canada ports facing container delays due to weather, rail issues – FreightWaves
Due to the rapidly changing application and modifications of duty rates, please note that Deringer is not responsible for coordinating the timing of U.S. entry and imposed tariff rates.
