West Africa Is Now Six Rates, Not One
West Africa Is Now Six Rates, Not One
Executive Summary
CMA CGM split the West African coast into five PSS tiers from Sep 21 2026, with Durban on a sixth at USD 350 per TEU.
Overview
Here's the thing: West Africa is not one lane any more. Put simply, CMA CGM filed peak season surcharges on 17 and 18 Sep 2026 that split the West African coast into five tiers, with Durban on a sixth. Central West Africa — Nigeria, Cote d'Ivoire, Benin, Equatorial Guinea — pays USD 50 per TEU. South West Africa — Angola, both Congos, Namibia, Gabon, Cameroon — pays USD 75 per TEU. Senegal pays USD 100 per TEU. Ghana and Togo pay USD 150 per TEU. North West Africa — Liberia, Mauritania, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde, Sao Tome — pays USD 200 per TEU. Every box to Durban pays USD 350 per TEU from 25 Sep 2026. Same carrier. Same month. Same equipment.
The spread is 7x.
Ask which port.
Not which country.
Key Details
Frankly, the ocean freight line is still the one you can negotiate. The surcharge lines are not. CMA CGM also rewrote its emergency fuel surcharge, effective 1 Oct 2026 and calculated on the date of loading: USD 265 per TEU for dry cargo on long-haul headhaul, USD 320 per TEU for reefer. Backhaul and intra-region cargo pay USD 75 per TEU dry and USD 90 per TEU reefer. Against the previous version, headhaul dry is up USD 115 per TEU and reefer up USD 155 per TEU. The previous version ran through 30 Sep 2026. The stated reason is the fuel premium out of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb.
That is USD 55 per TEU more for a reefer than a dry box.
The catch is that both land on the same invoice.
Looking Ahead
First, reprice every African booking loading between 1 Oct 2026 and 31 Oct 2026. The fuel surcharge took effect on 1 Oct 2026 by loading date, so a September rate on an October sailing is already wrong. Do not argue the booking date. The advisory says loading date.
Second, name the discharge port in your quotation. Write West Africa and your customer prices Lagos at USD 50 per TEU, the tier in force since 21 Sep 2026 while you pay Monrovia at USD 200 per TEU. That is USD 150 per TEU, and it comes out of your margin.
Third, run reefers as a separate line. USD 320 against USD 265 is USD 55 per TEU, and a 40ft reefer bills as two TEU.
You cannot wait for the customer to ask.
Market Outlook
If the tiering holds into the fourth quarter, expect African quotations to start carrying the discharge port as a pricing field rather than a routing detail. Shippers who booked on a single West Africa number through 2026 will find the gap surfacing at invoice stage, which is the worst possible moment to renegotiate. Get the port into the contract now.JETWAY Supply Chain is your execution partner on the ground in China — based in Tianjin, licensed as an NVOCC (MOT) and a member of CIFA, FIATA and WCA. We handle special cargo and compliance (dangerous goods, chemicals, batteries) across ocean, air, rail and road, and we pre-check your documents before the box is stuffed so your filing clears the first time. Send us your next booking and we will run the checks above against your sailing date. Request a quote.