Posted on 03/28/2024 5:39:10 AM PDT by Tench_Coxe
Ocean carriers are declaring “force majeure” due to the Baltimore port bridge crisis, telling logistics companies and U.S. shippers including retailers that once cargo is dropped off at alternate ports, it becomes their responsibility to pick up.
In an alert to customers Tuesday, CMA CGM wrote, “Those (containers) on the water will be discharged at an alternate port where they will be made available for pick-up, and CMA CGM’s bill of lading will terminate.”
It was the first ocean carrier to declare force majeure — the provision in a contract that frees parties from an obligation due to events beyond their control.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnbc.com ...
The perpetrators of this act of terrorism have blown their cover when they ran out in front of the cameras screaming:
“It wasn’t terrorism, we promise!”
I watch a video clip of an energy expert on Bannon’s show. He said the Baltimore port is a big exporter of coal to Europe. There are 2 coal exporters. One of them is blocked in by the bridge collapse for sure...
The ship turned off course at the precise moment required to hit the bridge. Thousand foot long ships don’t turn unless the rudder is turned.
One of the advantages of having the industry dominated by a relatively small number of major shipping companies is that these companies typically have contracts for their vessels to make calls at multiple ports in North America. So when Baltimore is out of commission for an indefinite period of time, they have plenty of options to divert cargo to neighboring ports.
That’s the way Force Majuere works. We all learned about it during the covid lunacy.
Only Tradepoint on Sparrows Point to the east of Key bridge is not blocked.
On Sparrows Point there is a cement company, VW & BMW auto lots, Home Depot warehouse, Floor & Decor warehouse, Perdue grains, Atlantic Forest Products, Amazon and a dozen other places that are used for bulk commodities like lumber coming in from Europe.
Plywood, OSB typically went to Ruckert Terminals because they had warehouse facilities right at the dock. They also trans loaded coal at their facility. That is currently blocked.
There is room on Sparrows Point to unload and store bulk products(things that do not need to be stored indoors). So, the owners of that property are probably being bombarded by companies looking to unload at their facilities.
Thanks for the info..
Tradepoint on Sparrows Point to the east of Key bridge is not blocked
bttt
This is exactly what will happen. If the incoming ship was going to Baltimore, then Canaveral, then Houston they will say your product is now being off loaded at one of those two ports.
The issue becomes when the products eventual destination is somewhere right in the mid Atlantic area or north east. So, you as a broker had figured $1000 additional freight on a truck to deliver that item to some place in PA. IF you unload in Houston, the freight might be $2000 to truck to PA. Then you have to call your customer in PA and say it is going to cost more to deliver that product. Some customers will work with you, others may not.
Yes, that is exactly what I stated. Or attempted to infer.
Diverting container traffic to neighboring ports is easy. It's the bulk, breakbulk, and specialized cargo (autos and other RO/RO, for example), that other ports may not be well configured to handle.
Nice to see people looking behind he curtain on all possibilities. Although the left will scream conspiracy tin foil hat maga drones because you are to believe what they say without question
The reason lots of companies used Baltimore was its central location too.
So, it was much easier(CHEAPER) to get an outbound truck from Baltimore than it is from other ports like Wilmington(DE), Philly, Wilmington(NC) and Newark.
NO BODY wants to go in and pick up at Newark. It is the most expensive place on the east coast to unload and truck out of. So, the only products typically going into Newark end up being delivered into NYC and northern NJ.
At Wilmington(DE)used need an appointment to load. They limit the loading appointments each day. So, there are times when you can not get an appointment for a week out from the time your product is released by customs.
New Haven is another option. However, the port facilities are not that large. So, it tends to be a port used only when the products eventual destination is New England across to as far west as IL. Trucking rates leaving New England are much cheaper than going into New England.
The least expensive ports on the east coast to truck out of a Canaveral and Tampa. This is because a lot of trucks deliver products into Florida, but not much comes back out.
So, you pay the cheapest $1/mile when coming out of Florida.
You are OK. I quoted you and “bttt” what you reported. Tx.
Good info again. Tx.
Thousand foot long ships don’t turn unless the rudder is turned.
I, too, find myself skeptical when being told that something “wasn’t terrorism”, but sometimes things go wrong at exactly the wrong time.
If Brandon were smart, he’d tell Buttigieg to go home and nurse his kids and ask Donald Trump to manage the clean up, since Trump has a record of getting things done quickly and under budget. Hopefully Trump will be in a position to direct things come January.
They don’t turn on a dime like a speedboat. Plus power in and out means no control. Plus the currents. Plus, all commercial vessels have local pilots come on board to take the ship in and out of port. In other words, the pilot is a local expert who does nothing but this as their job.
Sometimes crap happens.
Mike Brady at Oceanliner Designs already has a video up about the disaster.
https://youtu.be/R4AuGZIhJ_c?si=kY4ONUoxR3S1nldz
This is a fascinating YouTube channel, BTW.
I am inclined to believe this was accident. As with any accident there is generally a series of events that lead to the accident/crash. In this case the ship supposedly has just one engine and one screw. Were there maintenance issues?. Are all the crew qualified and manning their stations at the time of the crash? Was there turmoil on the bridge with the loss of power, etc?
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