65% jump in operating costs after diesel price hike, results in fewer trips across border
DAILY ferry services between Berjaya Waterfront Ferry Terminal in Stulang Laut, Johor Baru, and Batam Centre in Indonesia have been reduced due to a rise in operating costs.
Spokesperson for the four ferry operators, Azhari Mohd Amin said the reduced frequency took effect on April 1 after diesel prices pushed operating costs up by about 65%.
“We have cut down the daily services from 20 to 14, as the hike in diesel price is raising our operating costs,” he said when contacted.
Azhari, who is Citra Indomas Ferry Services proprietor, said all four ferry operators at the Stulang Laut terminal had also imposed a fuel surcharge of RM17 per passenger for trips to Batam and 65,000 rupiah (RM15) for return trips.
The other three operators are Dolphin Fast Ferry, Indomas Ferry and Pintas Ferry.
Azhari said ferry departures from Stulang Laut to Batam would continue between 7am and 6pm, with intervals of about one hour and 30 minutes.
He said ticket prices had increased from RM197 to RM240 from April 1, inclusive of fuel surcharge and port taxes at the Stulang Laut and Batam terminals.
He added that ferry services were currently operating at about 50% passenger load, with most being Indonesian passengers.
Ferries on the Stulang Laut-Batam route generally carry between 100 and 102 passengers, with the journey taking about two hours.
Azhari said the four operators were monitoring the situation closely and might further reduce ferry frequencies if the Middle East conflict dragged on until the year-end.
He said services were expected to operate at full capacity during the Labour Day long weekend, as many Malaysian holidaymakers travelling to Batam had booked tickets as early as January.
“We will be operating at full capacity from May 1 to 3, to fulfil the passenger demand,” he said.
Azhari said operators also hoped to see strong demand during the Wesak Day and Agong’s birthday holidays from May 30 to June 1.
“Apart from Malaysian holidaymakers, we are also relying on Indonesians seeking medical check-ups or treatment at private hospitals in Johor Baru,” he added.
