Troubles mount for global shipping lines as seafarers are in short supply amid coronavirus travel and quarantine restrictions

Shipping companies, already dealing with slumping demand because of the coronavirus outbreak that has pushed the global economy to the brink of a recession, have been hit by another problem. Travel and quarantine restrictions placed on dozens of countries are affecting their crews and adding to their troubles.

“In many ports crew changes are simply prohibited,” said Rajesh Unni, founder and chief executive of Singapore-based Synergy Group. Synergy manages more than 300 ships and over 12,000 seafarers. “Elsewhere, vessels from some origins are now forced to remain at anchorage in quarantine for up to 14 days before they can dock.”

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), which represents most of the world’s shipowners, has been lobbying the United Nations to have seafarers classified as “key” or “essential” workers. They estimate that there are 2 million seafarers globally, of which 1.2 million are on board ships at any time.

In a March 19 letter to the UN, the ICS estimated that at least 100,000 seafarers a month need to change over from the ships they operate. Crews are often flown home or flown to the ports in which ships are based, and the time they spend on board a vessel depends on their rank, experience and ship type.

Most recently, India has gone on a 21-day lockdown and is enforcing a two-week quarantine on all passengers, including Indian nationals, arriving from European countries hit hard by the virus and from China. China has just banned entry to all foreign nationals.

Singapore, home to Asia’s largest container port outside China and one of the world’s top places for oceangoing cargo ships to refuel, has prohibited all visitors to enter or transit with recent travel history to France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Italy and Spain are the latest hotspots of the Covid-19 outbreak that has affected at least 700,000 people globally and claimed more than 33,000 lives.