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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.<\/p>\n
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).<\/p>\n
\u201cThis measure is necessary to offset rising operational costs while ensuring the continued delivery of safe, reliable and efficient services,\u201d said Horizon Fast Ferry in a notice on its website.<\/p>\n
It added that it was monitoring the fuel price situation and would adjust the surcharge accordingly.<\/p>\n
The surcharge will apply to all tickets, even those purchased before Thursday, and will be collected at the operators’ respective ticket counters.<\/p>\n
Batam Fast said it will also apply surcharges of S$12 for ferry rides to Desaru Coast and S$6 for Pengelih, Malaysia.<\/p>\n
Energy costs have risen since the US-Israel conflict with Iran broke out last month.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The war has effectively shut a crucial shipping route, the Strait of Hormuz, where about a fifth of the world\u2019s daily oil consumption passes through.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n