ESC contributes to the development of the European maritime framework bringing in shippers’ perspective. This comes through policy recommendations, ESC industry activities for benchmarking, and cooperation with partners in the maritime sector. We need a better monitoring of the current maritime scenario, a constructive dialogue, and a positive attitude. These will only improve the issues the sector is facing: opacity, service levels, routes, and frequencies; as well as the environmental challenge. ESC aims at transparency and fair competition amongst the stakeholders involved.
Maritime Transport: Shippers’ Priorities
1. Transparency and Efficient Supply Chains
Maritime shipping accounts for a large share of global goods transport, making its efficiency, reliability, and sustainability essential for shippers. Transparent information flows between carriers, ports, terminals, and shippers are crucial for optimising capacity, planning operations, and ensuring fair application of surcharges, detention, and demurrage. Improved visibility also strengthens collaboration and supports a more resilient maritime supply chain.
2. Fair Collaboration and Competition
With the non-renewal of the Consortia Block Exemption Regulation (CBER) in April 2024, container carriers are now fully subject to standard EU competition law. While cooperation between carriers remains possible, it must be conducted within these stricter rules.
Shippers often lack the resources to individually pursue competition-related complaints. ESC therefore calls on the European Commission to establish a single window for shipper complaints and to actively investigate potential breaches, ensuring fair market conditions and balanced cooperation within the maritime sector.
3. Service Levels and Resilience
Service reliability in maritime transport is regularly challenged by climate change, geopolitical tensions, and global disruptions such as pandemics. Shippers typically hold a weaker bargaining position compared to carriers. ESC, together with its Global Association, advocates for a structured dialogue with carriers to define minimum service level expectations, aiming to strengthen predictability and reduce the impact of systemic disruptions on supply chains.
4. Surcharges: Transparency and Proportionality
Surcharges may be justified in exceptional circumstances—such as sudden geopolitical crises or extreme fuel price volatility. However, ESC maintains that such charges must remain exceptional, transparent, and proportionate to actual additional costs.
For greater accountability, ESC encourages carriers to clearly explain the rationale behind any surcharge and suggests exploring the disclosure of surcharge-related expenditures in financial reporting.
5. Detention and Demurrage: Fair Cost Allocation
Current practices often result in shippers paying detention and demurrage fees even when delays occur beyond their control. To address this, ESC has conducted a survey among its members and is working with the University of Le Havre to develop a best practice framework for fair and balanced cost distribution. The aim is to ensure that shippers are charged only when they are directly responsible for delays or extended container use.
6. European Ports Strategy: Preparing for the Future
The European Commission plans to publish a European Ports Strategy by the end of 2025. Ports play a critical role linking maritime transport with inland logistics, and shippers must be able to choose between ports based on transparent Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
ESC calls on the Commission to initiate the development of these KPIs within an EU-funded project. Ports must also be supported as they adapt to new challenges, including the energy transition and the increasing transport of military goods.