SINGAPORE – All cargo backlog accumulated in terminals over the past three weeks has been cleared and import operations have been stabilised, Changi Airport’s chief ground handler for airfreight Sats said early on Wednesday morning (Feb 9).
In a statement to The Straits Times, Sats said that incoming cargo is now being processed at the regular rate, although the handler is still working out some shipment details from the backlog.
It will take a few days for all freight forwarders to be informed of when to collect their cargo, it said. Arrangements are also being made to expedite transshipment cargo so the shipments can catch their connections.
The ground handler’s statement comes after nearly three weeks of congestion at its terminals, with massive delays in processing caused by a shortage of manpower due to Covid-19 combined with a surge in pre-Chinese New Year deliveries.
After ST reported the crisis on Sunday, Sats said it redeployed more than 40 staff from other areas of operations and recalled 10 to 12 staff daily on their days off to accelerate clearance.
It then pledged to clear the backlog by Tuesday, which saw many freight forwarders rushing to the terminals to collect their goods and Sats needing to pace them out so that operations could be carried out safely.
Freight forwarders who had been unable so far to collect their goods told ST they were continuing to suffer losses and might sue for compensation.
A shipping spare part company said its cargo of about eight tonnes, which had cost $80,000 to transport here, has had to be re-routed as it missed the vessel it should have been loaded onto.
Another electronics company said a whole batch of its soldering paste was rejected by a customer as it had been delayed by a week.
In response to ST’s queries, Sats said it will assess all claims and work closely with its insurers on possible compensation. It will also waive all storage charges of affected shipments until further notice.
In the past three weeks, the extraordinary circumstances at Sats’ terminals meant certain unusual steps had to be taken by the ground handler.
ST has learnt that it had to move some of its cargo to rival dnata’s storage area in Changi. Both Sats and dnata declined to say how big the area was, but by Wednesday, all of Sats’ cargo had been moved back into Sats’ terminals.
