Le Havre, France: The Normandy channel ports of Le Havre Caen-Ouistreham, Cherbourg and Dieppe have joined forces to help businesses meet the Brexit challenge come 1 January.
The ports have produced a series of handy fact sheets and are organising site visits for operators.
The border crossing process will rely on the smart border system, designed to keep port traffic moving in spite of the tighter controls due to Brexit.
Under this system only goods that have been declared or have a customs transit document can board the ferry, and lorries are channelled as soon as they disembark according to the customs, veterinary and/or phytosanitary status of the goods they are carrying.
The different trial runs have confirmed that the entire process is operational: from pairing at the port of embarkation to inspection of the goods, if required. All the equipment has been tested: information systems, port layouts and flows, on-board information, coordination between all the actors, etc. Every action that needs to be carried out by every agent has been tried and tested, the ports say.
“The results of these trials have been satisfactory and we can be confident that everything will go off without a hitch on 1 January 2021. The 2 main objectives have been achieved: smooth traffic flow and operational checks,” the ports said in a statement.
“Nevertheless, there is still one aspect that we need to keep a close eye on: the success of this system relies on everyone involved planning their crossing ahead of time and synchronising their actions. To reproduce the success we have seen in the trials and in the interests of all concerned, it is therefore essential that all the actors in the supply chain anticipate and plan their crossing process correctly.”
“That is why Haropa [Le Havre] and Ports of Normandy [Caen-Ouistreham, Cherbourg and Dieppe] have decided to join forces and create a set of practical fact sheets summarising key information for different situations.”
These fact sheets can be downloaded from Haropa and Ports of Normandy websites (see below for links).
In addition, transport operators, shippers, importers and customs representatives can contact Ports of Normandy or Haropa for explanations on how things will work at their chosen port.
Information sessions will be organised, with the participation of the port operator, the ferry company, customs, the DRAAF (regional food, agriculture and forestry directorate). They will take place in small groups either on site or, depending on the health situation, online.
To take part, contact:
- laurent.nativelle@portsdenormandie.fr – 00 33 6 85 33 46 53 for Ports of Normandy
- customer.service@haropaports.com – 00 33 2 32 74 72 06 for Haropa
Further information is available from:
