There can be several reasons why the shipping sector and therefore maritime jobs will be affected by a change of direction for vessels around the world. One can be political. Tensions and even wars can be responsible for unsafe passage around some coastal areas. Accidents in the regular routes that the shipping sector uses, can cause delays and even rerouting. Bad weather is also a factor when considering the direction you take.
Around the Cape of Good Hope, is the chosen change of path for shipping currently not able to have safe passage in the Red Sea and Suez Canal. Time spent at sea and distances travelled are obviously affected the most by these changes. Some vessels can add up to 3500 nautical miles and up to two weeks’ time to their journey. This means that the demands placed on maritime careers and, therefore, the seamen themselves can be increased, be they physical fitness, psychological strength and ability to be flexible and adaptable in the positions they fill.
Routing around South Africa
Weather around the Cape of Good Hope can add time and distance to journeys. Winter can surprise even the most experienced crew given the proximity that this geographical area has to the Southern Ocean. In recent times, the number of passages specifically for container ships, requiring a route round the Cape, have sometimes been reduced from 26 to 16. Severe conditions can lead to some days where there are no passages at all around South Africa. Also, ships have been seen to be corralled off the East coast of Africa waiting for the weather systems to clear or improve.
To give an idea of how these numbers are affecting time that shipping companies must make provisions for, the number of passages from 20th June 2024 to 10th July 2024 went from a maximum of twenty-nine and minimum of zero. This research was specifically for container ships.
Risk Strategies
A certain risk must be undertaken by the Maritime Sector. For example, Car Carriers, with their high fretboard, have been held up around the Cape of Good Hope and sometimes haven’t used this route at all. They are usually more cautious and wait for conditions to pass. Boxships are also somewhat considered when making their journey plans and take the plunge only when all options have been thought out.
Considering the effects on shipping companies and on shipping jobs that they are responsible for paying for, there is the obvious cost of fuel that is entailed. For their increased costs, the shipping sector tends to pass on their outgoings in the form of higher spot rates for shipping, particularly in the container market. There is another effect for the time taken for ships going round the Cape of Good Hope facing challenging weather conditions and that is the impact of ‘just in time’ delivery schedules. Deviations from planned routes can also awaken legal questions regarding contracts of carriage, insurance coverage and potential liability.
Contracts of carriage are legally binding agreements between a carrier and a shipper outlining the terms and conditions for transporting goods. Insurance coverage allows for the extent that an insurance policy covers a shipper for the planned journey. There may be parts of the policy that have to pay for extensions to the planned nature of the voyage. Potential liability refers to the risk of being legally held responsible for something that may or may not occur in the future, which then triggers the actual liability.
