- Indian Ports declare Force Majeure due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
- Indian LNG importers Petronet LNG, Gujarat State Petroleum, and GAIL have also issued force majeure notices.
- India has asked its ports to waive demurrage and other charges for any delays in arrival, berthing and other operations of ships caused by the lockdown.
Prompted by the unforeseen delays in the delivery of cargoes and other port-related services as a result of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, some of the Indian ports have declared force majeure, reports the Standard Club.
The decision is being made as the Indian Government has undertaken drastic lockdown measures restraining the movement of people and goods with the aim of curbing the spread of the coronavirus.
Force Majeure in Indian ports
The Standard P&I Club provides updated information regarding the current situation in Indian Ports due to COVID-19 crisis.
Namely, the Club mentions that their correspondents James Mackintosh & Co. Pvt. Ltd. informed that the following ports have declared Force Majeure:
- JSW and JSWIL ports at Goa
- APM terminal at JN port (Nhava Sheva)
- Paradip International Cargo Terminal
- Karwar port
- Kandla International Container Terminal
Nation-wide lockdown
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi called for a complete lockdown of the entire nation for the next 21 days beginning at midnight on March 24, in an effort to contain the COVID-19 Pandemic.
The Prime Minister said that even those nations with the best of the medical facilities could not contain the virus and that the social distancing is the only option to mitigate it.
Ports to waive demurrage
Reuters reported that Indian LNG importers Petronet LNG, Gujarat State Petroleum, and GAIL have also issued force majeure notices.
India has asked its ports to waive demurrage and other charges for any delays in arrival, berthing and other operations of ships caused by the lockdown according to a government statement.
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Source: Standard Club
