Older berths and yards that have already been decanted at Keppel Terminal are being reactivated by PSA Singapore (PSA) to deal with port congestion.

According to the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), there has been a "vessels bunching" effect as a result of the diversion of ships around the Cape of Good Hope.

A spokesperson for PSA said that since the start of 2024, there has been a confluence of geopolitical tensions, the downstream impact of the Red Sea crisis and global supply chain disruptions.

This has disrupted vessel arrival schedules around the world, with Singapore seeing a significant increase in vessel arrivals since the beginning of 2024.

MPA highlighted that the first four months of 2024 saw 13.36 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of container volumes handled in Singapore.

This is an 8.8 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2023.

Container vessels are waiting for a longer period of time for their berths

MPA added that for container vessels, there have been large increases in container volumes and the “bunching” of container vessel arrivals over the previous months due to supply chain disruptions in upstream locations.

MPA added that the increase in container vessels arriving off-schedule, along with the increase in container volumes handled, has resulted in longer waiting times for a container berth.

While most container vessels are berthed on arrival, PSA has worked with liners to adjust arrival schedules where feasible, and where this is not feasible, the average waiting time for container vessels is about two to three days.

However, there have been no berthing delays experienced by other vessels that call at Singapore, which is about two-thirds of all vessel arrivals.

More containers are being discharged in Singapore as vessels are trying to keep catch up with their schedule

In addition, the increase in the volume of containers being handled is due to several vessel lines discharging more containers in Singapore.

These vessel lines are forgoing their subsequent voyages to catch up to their next schedule, MPA said.

On top of that, the number of containers handled per vessel has also increased, MPA noted.

PSA has increased the volume of containers that can be handled from 770,000 TEUs to 820,000 TEUs

Apart from reactivating decanted older berths and terminals, PSA is also adding more manpower to address the situation, MPA highlighted.

As a result of these measures, PSA has increased the number of containers handled weekly from 770,000 TEUs to 820,000 TEUs.

MPA added, "MPA and PSA are working closely with container lines and regional feeders to update them on their berth availability and advising them on the arrival times to minimise delays in berthing."

As for PSA, it is in "close communication" with shipping lines to help optimise service delivery and facilitate service network reconfigurations to mitigate any impact of the on-going disruptions to their customers, the spokesperson added.

This includes the early exchange of vessel arrival and volume information, advance planning of berth line-ups and managing container dwell time.

"PSA Singapore remains fully committed to ensuring efficient and reliable service, and strives to help mitigate the impact caused by the disruptions across various nodes in the global supply chain," the spokesperson said.

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