SINGAPORE: Several ferry operators that offer services between Singapore and Batam have imposed surcharges amid a rise in fuel prices due to the Middle East conflict.
Horizon Fast Ferry, Majestic Fast Ferry and Batam Fast announced that passengers departing from Singapore for Batam would face a S$6 (US$4.70) fuel surcharge from Thursday (Mar 12).
“This measure is necessary to offset rising operational costs while ensuring the continued delivery of safe, reliable and efficient services,” said Horizon Fast Ferry in a notice on its website.
It added that it was monitoring the fuel price situation and would adjust the surcharge accordingly.
The surcharge will apply to all tickets, even those purchased before Thursday, and will be collected at the operators’ respective ticket counters.
Batam Fast said it will also apply surcharges of S$12 for ferry rides to Desaru Coast and S$6 for Pengelih, Malaysia.
Energy costs have risen since the US-Israel conflict with Iran broke out last month.
The war has effectively shut a crucial shipping route, the Strait of Hormuz, where about a fifth of the world’s daily oil consumption passes through.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have been attacking ships passing through the strait and said the world should be prepared for oil prices to rise to US$200 per barrel.
“Get ready for oil to be US$200 a barrel, because the oil price depends on regional security, which you have destabilised,” Ebrahim Zolfaqari, spokesperson for Iran’s military command, said in comments addressed to Washington.