costa-rica
The Sudden Surge in Energy Costs
The asphalted surfaces of Costa Rican intermodal corridors remain unchanged, but the pressure on truck tires is increasing dramatically. As of October 7, 2026, Maersk has implemented an Intermodal Fuel Fee of 12% for the transportation of goods by truck for import and export in the Central American country. This surcharge, applied under tariff codes EFS (Export) and IFS (Import), is not a temporary variation but a new structural cost layer that transforms global energy price volatility into an immediate financial friction for shippers.
A.P. Moller – Maersk’s decision responds to specific pressure on the continuity of service and the ability of local transportation providers. The carrier has explicitly linked the implementation to fuel scarcity and price instability, stating that the surcharge is “cost-reflective” to ensure the availability of capacity in terrestrial markets. For a CFO or a Supply Chain Director, this signal indicates that budgeting models based on stable logistics costs are obsolete: every week requires renegotiation of cash flows.
The infrastructural bottleneck is not physical but financial. The 12% applies to each TEU or pallet moved by land, regardless of the value of the goods transported. This mechanism disproportionately penalizes low-margin, high-volume goods, forcing companies to recalibrate retail prices or absorb a direct loss on the P&L.
The Global Fragmentation of Freight Rates
The cost of fuel is no longer a uniform macroeconomic indicator, but rather a local and variable factor. Maersk has recently extended similar updates to markets in Southeast Europe (Croatia, Bosnia, Slovenia) and the Benelux region, demonstrating that the pressure on intermodal costs is systemic and not isolated. The carrier’s strategy involves bi-weekly or continuous revisions to adjust rates to the reality of energy markets.
This fragmentation of freight rates creates a complex compliance and reporting risk for multinational groups operating in Costa Rica. Flows to Southeast Europe show similar dynamics, with surcharges varying depending on the mode (truck vs barge) and type of customer (BCO vs RCO). In Costa Rica, however, 12% is uniform for truck transport, eliminating the possibility of internal modal optimization to mitigate cost.
The operational consequence is the inability to level costs over quarterly horizons. Energy volatility requires working capital management that takes into account weekly fluctuations in land freight rates. Those who do not adapt their ERP systems to this frequency of updates risk having margins eroded by differences between budgeted and actual invoiced costs.
The Strategic Leverage on Immobilized Capital
Every day that goods remain in transit by truck in Costa Rica, the company’s capital is immobilized not only for the value of the goods, but also for the cost of financing that additional 12%. The intermodal surcharge acts as an internal tax on terrestrial transit time.
For importers who rely on continental hubs or short land corridors, the effect is immediate on COGS (Cost of Goods Sold). The increase in direct logistics costs reduces the gross margin available to cover other fixed costs. The bypass strategy is not geographical—physical routes are constrained by Central American geography—but financial: it involves shifting the burden onto end customers or optimizing customs clearance times to reduce the immobilization period.
The systemic risk lies in the rigidity of supply. If fuel shortages persist, as suggested by the carrier’s statements, terrestrial transportation providers will not be able to absorb the cost increases without failures or service reductions. This forces shippers to pay the surcharge to ensure operational continuity, transforming a variable cost into a structural fixed cost.
Impact on Margin and Working Capital
The critical indicator to monitor is no longer the price of crude oil, but the 12% incidence on operating revenue. For every million dollars of intermodal traffic transiting through Costa Rica, Maersk applies an immediate additional cost of $120,000 that must be managed within the payment cycle.
The future trajectory is clear: land logistics costs will remain volatile until fuel availability stabilizes. Companies that do not renegotiate service contracts or integrate these surcharges into final prices will see their gross margin erode constantly. Each week of delay in adjusting financial models equates to a direct loss of liquidity that compromises investment capacity.
The cost of working capital increases because the cash-out for land freight is advanced and grows in absolute value. Reconfiguration is not an option, but a necessity for the financial survival of B2B operators who depend on the Costa Rican intermodal supply chain.
Photo by Nikola Johnny Mirkovic on Unsplash
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