Strong indications emerged over the weekend that the prices of imported goods and fuel may rise after shipping companies including Maersk and Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) announced a rate hike in prices of bunker fuel, viewed as a fallout of  increasing oil prices.

The implication is that Nigerians will have to pay for the additional cost if the shipping companies fail to absorb the increased costs. There is also some anxiety that the increased rates may affect the landing cost of petrol and other petroleum products.

Crude oil prices have returned to 2014 highs on rising tensions between the United States and Iran after the former backed out of a nuclear deal.

Maersk, the world’s largest container ship and supply vessel operator and Mediterranean Shipping Company, ranked the second largest said the emergency bunker surcharge is expected to take effect from June 1.

“The increase (in bunker fuel prices) is more than 20 per cent compared with the beginning of 2018 and this unexpected development means that it is no longer possible for us to recover bunker costs through the standard bunker adjustment factors,” Maersk said in a statement to its customers.

“This unexpected development means that it is no longer possible for us to recover bunker costs through the standard bunker adjustment factors,” the statement added.

Explaining the looming situation, Kikelomo Abiola Cudjoe, Maersk’s Marine Operations Manager in Nigeria maintained that the use of holding bays will increase the cost of operations, which will eventually affect customers.

In a notice on its website, MSC said it could no longer sustain the situation without emergency action, adding that the worldwide temporary emergency bunker surcharge will be with immediate effect.

The impact may be worse in Nigeria because of the recent directive by the Director of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala-Usman that shipping companies must use their holding bays for emptying containers.

According to Usman, the directive wills help in eliminating the traffic gridlock caused by trucks waiting on port access roads to return empty containers to the ships.