Cargo tariffs set to go down

The Federation of Industry (FOI) said it had been assured by the government that port tariffs would go down while the Association of Shipping Agents yesterday spoke of "substantial savings" for the handling of local export cargo.

The FOI described a meeting it had yesterday with Communications and Competitiveness Minister Censu Galea and Malta Maritime Authority chairman Marc Bonello as positive.

FOI officials, led by the federation's president, Adrian Bajada, were assured that once the port reform is completed, there would not only be significant reductions in costs but also higher efficiency, making the service more competitive.

"FOI officials were also assured that, as from Monday, business operators would start receiving re-imbursements for any duplicated costs charged as of July 1. The federation is informed that there is a good basis for agreement between the MMA and the shipping agents, which will bring about reductions in import and export costs," the FOI said.

It added it would continue working to see through the implementation of the promised reform.

Ernest Sullivan, chairman of the Association of Ship Agents, said concrete progress had been made following extensive discussions with the MMA.

"The drive and initiatives taken by the association will lead to substantial savings for the handling of local export cargo," Mr Sullivan said, adding that discussions were still underway.

"The new tariffs for domestic cargo handled at Malta Freeport Terminals Ltd will be implemented as from Monday. The association would like to assure the market and customers that all domestic cargo handled at the Freeport since July 1 will be considered at the newly agreed tariffs.

"In this respect, the association has already released a circular requesting its members to embark on the refund process to all customers who have been double charged for the period under reference," Mr Sullivan said.