Ship service companies across the Dominican Republic will launch a strike this Friday at all national ports to protest against the $100 fee for unloading oily waste and the $75 fee for provisioning, imposed by the Dominican Maritime Shipping Company.
Guillermo de la Rosa, president of the National Federation of Ship Suppliers (Fenabuques), stated that the Dominican Port Authority is aware that these charges are illegal. Instead of prohibiting the fees, the authority has restricted port access to companies that refuse to pay.
The strike’s primary impact will be on ships arriving at Dominican ports, which will be unable to dispose of oily waste or obtain supplies. If the strike continues, vessels may resort to dumping waste into the sea, which would violate the MARPOL Convention—a global agreement to prevent marine pollution from ships, to which the Dominican Republic is a signatory.
Fenabuques emphasized that the Dominican Constitution assigns the responsibility of supplying ships and unloading solid and oily waste to small companies, which have been performing these services at the country’s ports for over 50 years.
They also noted that shipping companies already face multiple fees, including a 10% charge on their provisioning bills, $4 per ton in state-run ports, $10 to $20 in licensed ports for waste unloading, and $75 to Customs for each request.
All port authorities and private companies have been notified of the impending strike.
