ORIENT Overseas Container Line (OOCL) has decided to suspend its container shipping services to the port of Gothenburg until the industrial action at APM Terminals' facility is resolved.
A spokesperson for the carrier told The Loadstar: "In response to the lock-out, OOCL has suspended all bookings to and from Gothenburg until further notice.
"We have been working with all concerned parties on options to address the problem and to meet the requirements of our customers."
The carrier's decision mirrors action taken by Hapag-Lloyd, which announced in March it would redirect one of two Gothenburg feeder services to Varburg owing to the ongoing row, and last month suspended its second feeder service due to the lockout. However, a spokesperson told The Loadstar this was now back in service.
The dispute - concerning dockers' requests at the terminal to be party to a collective bargaining agreement - could last for up to another year.
Responding to blockades by the Swedish Dockworkers Union Section 4, APM Terminals Gothenburg first imposed partial lockouts in mid-May, which are now set to last until the end of June.
With lock-outs in place, a port source told The Loadstar Gothenburg was operating at 30 per cent capacity.
"There's a 70 per cent overflow, around 525,000 TEU, from the port - almost double the combined annual volumes of the second and third largest [Norrkopping 100,000 TEU] ports," said the source.
"Put quite simply, the country does not have the facilities to handle these volumes and it is causing serious congestion in the Swedish supply chain."
