It is common practice to transport goods by sea in containers. Transport companies have their own fleet of containers. At the time of delivery, they provide their customers with sea containers, their transport is carried out according to the agreed schedule. Therefore, for goods transported by sea, it is better to order the container directly from the carrier that will deliver the goods.

How to order shipping containers transport cargo by water?

To obtain a container, you must contact the container carrier yourself or through a forwarder and order the transport. Upon approval of the maritime application, the owner of the cargo receives a container for loading the goods and hands it over for shipment by sea to the destination.

The cost of using a sea container transported by water is included in the cost of transport (freight). After the container arrives at the destination port, there is a free period during which the consignee must release the container from the cargo and return it empty. The last day of use of the container is usually considered to be the day on which the recipient returns it to the place previously agreed with the owner of the container. The conditions of use for each sea line are different. Dates and tariffs are indicated at the stage of signing the transport contract.

Alternatively, sea shipping containers can be rented from container operators. In this case, all rental costs are covered by the operator and the ocean freight and expenses in the port are covered by the sea line. You should also check that the container has a valid maritime permit and is in good technical condition.

What affects the costs of renting shipping containers?

Many cargo owners ordering container shipping by sea are interested in the pricing features of this type of international shipping. Indeed, a number of key factors are taken into account when formulating the final payment for the carriage of goods by sea: from the type of container and cargo to the country of unloading and the season.

So, the basic factors that determine container shipping cost are:

  • Direction and distance of cargo transportation in the container.
  • When accepting the application for the carriage of goods in a container, the freight forwarder takes into account the probability that after the goods have been delivered to the destination country, the container will be emptied back to the next loading point.
  • The reasons may be different: it was not possible to find the cargo in advance for an empty container, the country of unloading is more focused on import than export, and the local container transportation market is saturated with offers, etc.

Of course, carrying empty sea containers carrying cargo does not bring any benefit to the carrier, so the cost of transport is determined depending on the direction and length of the container moving from the country of unloading.

The difference between export and import traffic

The cost of shipping freight in a container by sea depends on whether the goods are exported from the country (exported) or imported into the country (import). The fact is that today, in the freight traffic of many countries, and especially in the transport of cargo in containers, import outweighs export. This leads to the hauliers who delivered the goods having to return empty containers and an increase in the flow of export goods would solve the problem. To stimulate the market and increase export deliveries, sea carriers reduce the cost of renting shipping shipping containers for export, so on the same route the price of shipping goods in a container for export may be lower than shipping imported goods.

Type of sea shipping containers

The type of container used affects the total cost of shipping. Depending on the load, it can be a standard container that has the dimensions of a medium-sized building with walls and roof and floor. For a wide variety of cargo, Perishable Food Refrigerated Container, Open Roof Custom Cargo Container, Oversized Platform Container, Liquid Carrier Tanker and other types of containers.

The price of transporting standard containers is the lowest due to their widespread distribution and demand among cargo owners, simplicity of loading and unloading, fastening on a ship and storage in a warehouse. The billing unit for transport and all organizational work related to paperwork, work with the sender and the recipient is one container, no difference in size. Therefore, it will be more profitable and cheaper to transport one large container than two small containers.

Transportation of goods in a refrigerated container is one of the most expensive for a number of reasons. First, the high cost of the container itself and the cost of its maintenance and repair are taken into account. Secondly, ensuring appropriate conditions for the transport of a refrigerated sea container: access to energy, electricity consumption, limited number of places on the ship with the possibility of connecting to the network, uninterrupted power at the container loading and unloading points or during transhipment in the port.

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