A cargo ship suspended its journey to the capital due to reported congestion issues. The local shipping agent for the Capitaine Tasman confirmed that the vessel could not dock in Suva due to insufficient berthing space. Late last night, the ports authority clarified that the ship arrived a day later than planned.
Fiji Ports Terminal’s operations manager, Shone Pereira, explained, “There was no berth available on September 21 as the vessel arrived late and other ships were using the North and South berths.” Exporters, like Performance Flotation Development, have faced similar setbacks multiple times recently, leading to frustration.
The Nabua-based textile manufacturer stated that all inbound goods would be offloaded at Lautoka port and transferred to another ship, Capitaine Magellan, for delivery to Suva. Performance Flotation Development’s managing director, Mike Towler, expressed his dissatisfaction with the situation at the wharf, stating, “This is the sort of situation we must deal with regarding Fiji Ports. It’s unacceptable.”
Towler’s company is the largest manufacturer of life jackets in the Southern Hemisphere. According to the local agent, Shipping Services Fiji Limited, the Capitaine Tasman skipped Suva due to a lack of berthing availability, yard congestion, and slow operational productivity. They confirmed that all inbound cargo would be discharged in Lautoka and then transferred to Capitaine Magellan for transport to Suva.