Maersk will raise its Congestion Fee Destination (CFD) on imports into Durban by up to 80%, lifting the charge for 40-foot containers from US$500 to US$900 with effect from 1 November 2026.

The revised surcharge applies to all 20-foot and 40-foot boxes discharged at the South African port, with charges levied per container:

• All 20-foot containers: US$250, rising to US$450
• All 40-foot containers: US$500, rising to US$900

When does the new fee take effect?

Maersk has staggered the implementation by origin market:

• Non-regulated countries: 1 November 2026
• Vietnam: 1 November 2026
• South Korea and Taiwan: 8 November 2026

The surcharge covers import cargo originating from Far East Asian, Indian Subcontinent and Middle Eastern load ports and destined for Durban. Carriers on those lanes into South Africa's busiest container gateway now face a materially higher cost base per call, and the increase is large enough — US$400 more per FEU — to reshape landed-cost calculations for Asian-origin cargo.

Why was the fee introduced?

Maersk first imposed the congestion fee in September, in response to operational disruption at Durban. The original charge was set at US$250 per 20-foot container and US$500 per 40-foot container. The decision to nearly double the fee within weeks signals that the operational conditions that triggered it have not eased to the carrier's satisfaction.

For shippers and forwarders routing Far East, Indian Subcontinent and Middle East cargo into South Africa, the increase arrives as a direct per-box cost on top of base ocean rates. Importers with cargo landing after the November effective dates should expect the higher figures on their invoices and factor them into procurement and pricing decisions now, particularly for shipments from South Korea and Taiwan where the fee kicks in a week later.

The move also carries a commercial message for competitors and customers alike: when a carrier of Maersk's scale nearly doubles a port-related surcharge, it reflects both the cost of congestion — longer port stays, schedule slippage, reduced asset utilisation — and a willingness to pass that cost through rather than absorb it.

Unless Durban's operational performance improves, further surcharge revisions remain a live possibility, and other carriers calling the port may follow Maersk's lead.