The import of goods to the Maldives is facing long delays due to the disruption of international cargo shipping, hold ups at Sri Lanka’s Colombo port and damage to two boats, local businesses and shipping agents have said.
In addition to difficulties in transporting goods between the Maldives and Colombo, changes to the routes of cargo ships have caused delays in clearing goods at ports in Colombo and Singapore as well, Ahmed Nasir, owner of Lily Shipping and Trading, one of the country’s largest wholesalers, told Adhadhu.
“Goods that should go to various countries are stuck in Colombo and Singapore as well. In addition, freights have gone up by a lot due to changes to shipping routes,” Nasir said.
Captain Ahmed Maumoon, chairman of Centurion Pvt Ltd, a shipping agent and logistics service provider, told Adhadhu that a container boat that carries goods to the Maldives from Sri Lanka was recently damaged and unable to depart for about a month, which also caused long delays in addition to problems created by changes to shipping routes.
“We’re also facing serious space constraints in bringing goods as well. So we’re only bringing perishables in the space we get,” Maumoon said.
Damage to a crane on a Maldives State Shipping (MSS) vessel that prevented departure for several days also caused delays in the transport of goods from Colombo to Male’, a large-scale importer said.
MSS Managing Director Ahmed Shareef said difficulties in cargo transport have been experienced across the world due to the logjam caused by changes to shipping routes. However, the arrival of goods have not been delayed due to any problem faced by an MSS ship, he said. The company’s MSS Galena (680 TUI) and MSS Barrier (1,104 TUI) are scheduled to travel between the Maldives and Sri Lanka every 10 days.
“There are such difficulties. But our boats are travelling on schedule. There have not been any reports of any boat facing a problem,” he said.
The company has also started using a ship with a capacity of 500 containers to carry goods from Malaysia and Singapore to Sri Lanka, Shareef said.
Danger of Yemen’s Houthis to cargo ships
Yemen’s Houthi fighters have been attacking ships crossing the Red Sea since late 2023. About 12 percent of international shipping passes through the route.
As a result of the danger posed by the Houthis in the main shipping lane that connects east and west, most shipping companies have changed to a route circling Africa. While the journey takes an extra 10 days, the best port for goods transhipment is in Colombo. Consequently, Sri Lanka’s commercial harbour has been overwhelmed since the end of last year. Container goods shipped to the Maldives from various countries are also taken to Colombo and then transported on ships that travel between Sri Lanka and Maldives.
Statistics from the Sri Lankan Port Authority (SLPA) show that the volume of transhipment goods in the first three months of the year doubled compared to the same period last year.
Yemen’s Houthi fighters attacked two tankers with missiles and drones last Monday as well.
