Ghana’s cement manufacturers have introduced a temporary GH¢12 surcharge on each bag of cement, blaming long delays for clinker vessels at Tema Port.

The Chamber of Cement Manufacturers, Ghana says GH¢10 of the charge is for demurrage, with GH¢2 covering taxes and levies.

Demurrage is charged when a vessel is kept waiting beyond the agreed period for loading or unloading. Cement producers import clinker, the main intermediate material used to make cement, and say ships are now spending much longer waiting to discharge it at Tema.

COCMAG says the average wait for clinker vessels rose from about seven days in January to between 30 and more than 40 days in August.

It estimates that the delays cost the industry between US$45 million and US$50 million in demurrage during the first eight months of 2026. Individual vessels, it says, have accumulated bills of about US$800,000 to US$1 million.

Those figures come from the manufacturers and have not been independently audited in the material used for this report.

Congestion has been a continuing problem

The Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority said in March that clinker delays were already increasing costs for cement manufacturers.

The government has been dredging berths at Tema Port to allow larger vessels to discharge more efficiently, while the Transport Ministry has also acknowledged that prolonged port delays create extra charges that can be passed on to consumers.

The Ghana Shippers’ Authority has separately been examining congestion and vessel turnaround times at the port.

COCMAG says only three main berths are currently available for clinker discharge and that Berths 10 and 11 remain unavailable to cement importers and manufacturers.

The chamber has asked government and GPHA to reduce vessel waiting times and expand access to berths.

How long the surcharge will last

COCMAG says the GH¢12 charge is temporary and is due to remain in place until 31 December 2026, subject to monitoring.

The chamber says it can be removed if congestion eases and demurrage costs return to normal levels.

Until then, the additional charge will feed into the cost of cement bought by distributors, retailers and builders.