Huge cargo ship gets wedged in Suez Canal
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Tugs work to free giant container ship stranded in Suez Canal
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Yusri Mohamed and Jessica Jaganathan and Florence Tan
Publishing date:Mar 24, 2021 • 1 day ago • 3 minute read • Join the conversation
A handout picture released by the Suez Canal Authority on March 24, 2021 shows a part of the Taiwan-owned MV Ever Given (Evergreen) lodged sideways and impeding all traffic across the waterway of Egypt's Suez Canal.
A handout picture released by the Suez Canal Authority on March 24, 2021 shows a part of the Taiwan-owned MV Ever Given (Evergreen) lodged sideways and impeding all traffic across the waterway of Egypt's Suez Canal. PHOTO BY SUEZ CANAL /AFP via Getty Images
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CAIRO — The shortest shipping route from Europe to Asia remained blocked on Wednesday as 10 tug boats struggled to free one of the world’s largest container ships after it ran aground in the Suez Canal.
The 400-meter, 224,000-tonne Ever Given ran aground on Tuesday morning after losing the ability to steer amid high winds and a dust storm, the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) said in a statement.
About 30% of global container shipping volumes pass through the canal each day, carrying everything from fuel to consumer goods. The main alternative route for ships traveling between Asia and Europe, around the African cape, takes a week longer to navigate.
GAC, a Dubai-based marine services company, said authorities were still working to free the ship mid-afternoon on Wednesday, and that information it had received earlier claiming the vessel was partially refloated was inaccurate.
Images posted by the SCA appeared to show the ship positioned diagonally across the canal, blocking its full width, as tugs tried to dislodge it. Photos showed a digger removing earth and rock from the bank of the canal around the ship’s bow.
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An official said work to release the ship could continue into the night, weather permitting.
The SCA’s chairman told local media that despite the blockage, a southbound convoy was on the move and that the authority was trying to keep traffic flowing between waiting areas as best it could while salvage efforts continued.
“Once we get this boat out, then that’s it, things will go back to normal. God willing, we’ll be done today,” Chairman Osama Rabie said. The authority was considering compensation for delayed ships, he said.
About 12% of world trade by volume passes through the canal, and it is a major source of hard currency for Egypt, generating $5.6 billion in 2020.
Tracking maps had shown the ship grounded in the southernmost stretch of the waterway, between the Great Bitter Lake and the Red Sea port of Suez.
At least 30 ships were blocked to the north of the Ever Given, and three to the south, local sources said. Several dozen ships could also be seen grouped around the northern and southern entrances to the canal.
REBALANCING EFFORTS
The SCA said it was trying to rebalance the ship, and local sources said efforts could shift towards digging the ship out if the tug boats were unable to release it.
Dutch marine services company Boskalis said its subsidiary Smit Salvage had been hired to help with the operation and was sending 10 people to Egypt.
In such cases, “you really have to do the calculations to understand how solidly she (is) grounded, and how much power you can exert without damaging the vessel,” Boskalis spokesman Martijn Schuttevaer told Reuters.
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Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM), the ship’s technical manager, said the Ever Given had run aground in the canal at around 05:40 GMT on Tuesday. It said an investigation was underway.
BSM said the crew were safe and there were no reports of pollution. A BSM spokesperson said the vessel was owned by Japan’s Shoei Kisen KK, declining to provide further details. Shoei Kisen KK could not be reached for comment.
Taiwan’s Evergreen Marine Corp, which is leasing the vessel, said the owner had told it the ship “was suspected of being hit by a sudden strong wind, causing the hull to deviate from (the) waterway and accidentally hit the bottom.”
The ship is likely to have been insured for $100-140 million, insurance brokers say.
SUPPLY CONCERNS
Dozens of ships carrying crude, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and retail goods were unable to sail through the canal on Wednesday, potentially disrupting supplies to global markets, shipping sources said.
Oil analytics firm Vortexa said ten tankers carrying 13 million barrels of crude could be affected. Oil prices rose more than 2%.
As of Wednesday, five laden LNG tankers were unable to pass through the canal due to the grounded container ship, according to data intelligence firm Kpler.
Of the five, three were bound for Asia and two for Europe, said Kpler analyst Rebecca Chia. She said that if the congestion persists until the end of this week, it would affect the transit of 15 LNG tankers.
During 2020, nearly 19,000 ships, or an average of 51.5 per day, passed through the canal, according to the SCA.
If the Ever Given remained stuck for up to 48 hours, “the impact will be limited to a gradual worsening of already very bad vessel delays,” said Niels Madsen, VP of Product and Operations at Denmark-based Sea-Intelligence.
“If on the other hand, the Suez Canal remains blocked for another 3-5 days, then this will start to have very serious global ramifications,” he said.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Yusri Mohamed and Jessica Jaganathan and Florence Tan
Publishing date:Mar 24, 2021 • 1 day ago • 3 minute read • Join the conversation
A handout picture released by the Suez Canal Authority on March 24, 2021 shows a part of the Taiwan-owned MV Ever Given (Evergreen) lodged sideways and impeding all traffic across the waterway of Egypt's Suez Canal.
A handout picture released by the Suez Canal Authority on March 24, 2021 shows a part of the Taiwan-owned MV Ever Given (Evergreen) lodged sideways and impeding all traffic across the waterway of Egypt's Suez Canal. PHOTO BY SUEZ CANAL /AFP via Getty Images
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CAIRO — The shortest shipping route from Europe to Asia remained blocked on Wednesday as 10 tug boats struggled to free one of the world’s largest container ships after it ran aground in the Suez Canal.
The 400-meter, 224,000-tonne Ever Given ran aground on Tuesday morning after losing the ability to steer amid high winds and a dust storm, the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) said in a statement.
About 30% of global container shipping volumes pass through the canal each day, carrying everything from fuel to consumer goods. The main alternative route for ships traveling between Asia and Europe, around the African cape, takes a week longer to navigate.
GAC, a Dubai-based marine services company, said authorities were still working to free the ship mid-afternoon on Wednesday, and that information it had received earlier claiming the vessel was partially refloated was inaccurate.
Images posted by the SCA appeared to show the ship positioned diagonally across the canal, blocking its full width, as tugs tried to dislodge it. Photos showed a digger removing earth and rock from the bank of the canal around the ship’s bow.
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An official said work to release the ship could continue into the night, weather permitting.
The SCA’s chairman told local media that despite the blockage, a southbound convoy was on the move and that the authority was trying to keep traffic flowing between waiting areas as best it could while salvage efforts continued.
“Once we get this boat out, then that’s it, things will go back to normal. God willing, we’ll be done today,” Chairman Osama Rabie said. The authority was considering compensation for delayed ships, he said.
About 12% of world trade by volume passes through the canal, and it is a major source of hard currency for Egypt, generating $5.6 billion in 2020.
Tracking maps had shown the ship grounded in the southernmost stretch of the waterway, between the Great Bitter Lake and the Red Sea port of Suez.
At least 30 ships were blocked to the north of the Ever Given, and three to the south, local sources said. Several dozen ships could also be seen grouped around the northern and southern entrances to the canal.
REBALANCING EFFORTS
The SCA said it was trying to rebalance the ship, and local sources said efforts could shift towards digging the ship out if the tug boats were unable to release it.
Dutch marine services company Boskalis said its subsidiary Smit Salvage had been hired to help with the operation and was sending 10 people to Egypt.
In such cases, “you really have to do the calculations to understand how solidly she (is) grounded, and how much power you can exert without damaging the vessel,” Boskalis spokesman Martijn Schuttevaer told Reuters.
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Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM), the ship’s technical manager, said the Ever Given had run aground in the canal at around 05:40 GMT on Tuesday. It said an investigation was underway.
BSM said the crew were safe and there were no reports of pollution. A BSM spokesperson said the vessel was owned by Japan’s Shoei Kisen KK, declining to provide further details. Shoei Kisen KK could not be reached for comment.
Taiwan’s Evergreen Marine Corp, which is leasing the vessel, said the owner had told it the ship “was suspected of being hit by a sudden strong wind, causing the hull to deviate from (the) waterway and accidentally hit the bottom.”
The ship is likely to have been insured for $100-140 million, insurance brokers say.
SUPPLY CONCERNS
Dozens of ships carrying crude, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and retail goods were unable to sail through the canal on Wednesday, potentially disrupting supplies to global markets, shipping sources said.
Oil analytics firm Vortexa said ten tankers carrying 13 million barrels of crude could be affected. Oil prices rose more than 2%.
As of Wednesday, five laden LNG tankers were unable to pass through the canal due to the grounded container ship, according to data intelligence firm Kpler.
Of the five, three were bound for Asia and two for Europe, said Kpler analyst Rebecca Chia. She said that if the congestion persists until the end of this week, it would affect the transit of 15 LNG tankers.
During 2020, nearly 19,000 ships, or an average of 51.5 per day, passed through the canal, according to the SCA.
If the Ever Given remained stuck for up to 48 hours, “the impact will be limited to a gradual worsening of already very bad vessel delays,” said Niels Madsen, VP of Product and Operations at Denmark-based Sea-Intelligence.
“If on the other hand, the Suez Canal remains blocked for another 3-5 days, then this will start to have very serious global ramifications,” he said.
Tugs work to free giant container ship stranded in Suez Canal
CAIRO — The shortest shipping route from Europe to Asia remained blocked on Wednesday as 10 tug boats struggled to free one of the world’s largest container ships a…
Suez Canal could be blocked for weeks by 'beached whale' ship
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Yusri Mohamed and Gavin Maguire and Florence Tan
Publishing date:Mar 25, 2021 • 5 hours ago • 4 minute read • Join the conversation
Stranded container ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, is seen after it ran aground, in Suez Canal, Egypt March 25, 2021.
Stranded container ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, is seen after it ran aground, in Suez Canal, Egypt March 25, 2021. PHOTO BY SUEZ CANAL AUTHORITY /Handout via REUTERS
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ISMAILIA — A huge container ship blocking the Suez Canal like a “beached whale” may take weeks to free, the salvage company said, as officials stopped all ships entering the channel on Thursday in a new setback for global trade.
The 400 meter Ever Given, almost as long as the Empire State Building is high, is blocking transit in both directions through one of the world’s busiest shipping channels for oil and refined fuels, grain and other trade linking Asia and Europe.
Late on Thursday, dredgers were still working to remove thousands of tonnes of sand from around the ship’s bow.
The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) said earlier that nine tugs were working to move the vessel, which got stuck diagonally across the single-lane southern stretch of the canal on Tuesday morning amid high winds and a dust storm.
“We can’t exclude it might take weeks, depending on the situation,” Peter Berdowski, CEO of Dutch company Boskalis, one of two rescue teams trying to free the ship, told the Dutch television program “Nieuwsuur.”
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A total of 206 large container ships, tankers carrying oil and gas, and bulk vessels hauling grain have backed up at either end of the canal, according to tracking data, creating one of the worst shipping jams seen for years.
The blockage comes on top of the disruption to world trade already caused in the past year by COVID-19, with trade volumes hit by high rates of ship cancellations, shortages of containers and slower handling speeds at ports.
The world’s number one line A.P. Moller Maersk said it was considering diverting vessels around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, adding five to six days to the journey between Asia and Europe. It said time-sensitive cargo could be sent on trains and airplanes, although no decisions had yet been made.
The SCA, which had allowed some vessels to enter the canal in the hope the blockage could be cleared, said it had temporarily suspended all traffic on Thursday. Maersk said in a customer advisory it had seven vessels affected.
Berdowski said the ship’s bow and stern had been lifted up against either side of the canal.
“It is like an enormous beached whale. It’s an enormous weight on the sand. We might have to work with a combination of reducing the weight by removing containers, oil and water from the ship, tug boats and dredging of sand.”
Dredging work to remove 15,000-20,000 cubic meters of sand surrounding the bow continued after dark on Thursday, in coordination with the team from Boskalis subsidiary Smit Salvage, the SCA said.
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The dredging work, which began on Wednesday evening and has involved two dredgers, aims to return the ship to a draft of 12-16 meters at which it could be refloated, the authority said.
Japanese shipowner Shoei Kisen apologized for the incident and said work on freeing the ship, which was heading to Europe from China, “has been extremely difficult” and it was not clear when the vessel would float again.
Another official with knowledge of the operation said that was likely to take days. “If you end up in the scenario that you have to remove cargo then you are looking at a time consuming exercise,” he said, declining to be named.
A higher tide due on Sunday may help the rescue efforts.
However, the Egyptian meteorological authority is also warning of a “disruption of marine navigation” due to an expected sea storm on Saturday and Sunday, with winds forecast to reach up to 80 kph (50 mph) and waves up to 6 meters high along the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez.
Roughly 30% of the world’s shipping container volume transits through the 193 km (120 mile) Suez Canal daily, and about 12% of total global trade of all goods.
“Every port in Western Europe is going to feel this,” Leon Willems, a spokesman for Rotterdam Port, Europe’s largest, said. “We hope for both companies and consumers that it will be resolved soon.”
Consultancy Wood Mackenzie said the biggest impact was on container shipping, but there were also a total of 16 laden crude and product oil tankers due to sail through the canal and now delayed.
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The tankers were carrying 870,000 tonnes of crude and 670,000 tonnes of clean oil products such as gasoline, naphtha and diesel, it said.
Russia and Saudi Arabia are the top two exporters of oil through the canal, while India and China are the main importers, oil analytics firm Vortexa said. Consultancy Kpler said the canal accounted for only 4.4% of total oil flows but a prolonged disruption would complicate flows of Russian and Caspian oil to Asia and oil from the Middle East into Europe.
The impact on oil prices has been limited so far as the destination of most oil tankers is Europe, where demand is currently weaker due to a new round of lockdowns.
The deputy managing director of Germany’s BDI industry association, Holger Loesch, expressed concern, saying earlier shipping holdups were already affecting output, especially in industries depending on raw materials or construction supplies.
About 16% of Germany’s chemicals imports arrive by ship via the Suez canal and the chief economist for the association of German chemicals and pharmaceuticals producers VCI, Henrik Meincke, said they would be affected with every day of blockage.
The owner and insurers face claims totalling millions of dollars even if the ship is refloated quickly, industry sources said on Wednesday. Shoei Kisen said the hull insurer of the group is MS&AD Insurance Group while the liability insurer is UK P&I Club.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Yusri Mohamed and Gavin Maguire and Florence Tan
Publishing date:Mar 25, 2021 • 5 hours ago • 4 minute read • Join the conversation
Stranded container ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, is seen after it ran aground, in Suez Canal, Egypt March 25, 2021.
Stranded container ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, is seen after it ran aground, in Suez Canal, Egypt March 25, 2021. PHOTO BY SUEZ CANAL AUTHORITY /Handout via REUTERS
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ISMAILIA — A huge container ship blocking the Suez Canal like a “beached whale” may take weeks to free, the salvage company said, as officials stopped all ships entering the channel on Thursday in a new setback for global trade.
The 400 meter Ever Given, almost as long as the Empire State Building is high, is blocking transit in both directions through one of the world’s busiest shipping channels for oil and refined fuels, grain and other trade linking Asia and Europe.
Late on Thursday, dredgers were still working to remove thousands of tonnes of sand from around the ship’s bow.
The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) said earlier that nine tugs were working to move the vessel, which got stuck diagonally across the single-lane southern stretch of the canal on Tuesday morning amid high winds and a dust storm.
“We can’t exclude it might take weeks, depending on the situation,” Peter Berdowski, CEO of Dutch company Boskalis, one of two rescue teams trying to free the ship, told the Dutch television program “Nieuwsuur.”
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A total of 206 large container ships, tankers carrying oil and gas, and bulk vessels hauling grain have backed up at either end of the canal, according to tracking data, creating one of the worst shipping jams seen for years.
The blockage comes on top of the disruption to world trade already caused in the past year by COVID-19, with trade volumes hit by high rates of ship cancellations, shortages of containers and slower handling speeds at ports.
The world’s number one line A.P. Moller Maersk said it was considering diverting vessels around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, adding five to six days to the journey between Asia and Europe. It said time-sensitive cargo could be sent on trains and airplanes, although no decisions had yet been made.
The SCA, which had allowed some vessels to enter the canal in the hope the blockage could be cleared, said it had temporarily suspended all traffic on Thursday. Maersk said in a customer advisory it had seven vessels affected.
Berdowski said the ship’s bow and stern had been lifted up against either side of the canal.
“It is like an enormous beached whale. It’s an enormous weight on the sand. We might have to work with a combination of reducing the weight by removing containers, oil and water from the ship, tug boats and dredging of sand.”
Dredging work to remove 15,000-20,000 cubic meters of sand surrounding the bow continued after dark on Thursday, in coordination with the team from Boskalis subsidiary Smit Salvage, the SCA said.
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The dredging work, which began on Wednesday evening and has involved two dredgers, aims to return the ship to a draft of 12-16 meters at which it could be refloated, the authority said.
Japanese shipowner Shoei Kisen apologized for the incident and said work on freeing the ship, which was heading to Europe from China, “has been extremely difficult” and it was not clear when the vessel would float again.
Another official with knowledge of the operation said that was likely to take days. “If you end up in the scenario that you have to remove cargo then you are looking at a time consuming exercise,” he said, declining to be named.
A higher tide due on Sunday may help the rescue efforts.
However, the Egyptian meteorological authority is also warning of a “disruption of marine navigation” due to an expected sea storm on Saturday and Sunday, with winds forecast to reach up to 80 kph (50 mph) and waves up to 6 meters high along the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez.
Roughly 30% of the world’s shipping container volume transits through the 193 km (120 mile) Suez Canal daily, and about 12% of total global trade of all goods.
“Every port in Western Europe is going to feel this,” Leon Willems, a spokesman for Rotterdam Port, Europe’s largest, said. “We hope for both companies and consumers that it will be resolved soon.”
Consultancy Wood Mackenzie said the biggest impact was on container shipping, but there were also a total of 16 laden crude and product oil tankers due to sail through the canal and now delayed.
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The tankers were carrying 870,000 tonnes of crude and 670,000 tonnes of clean oil products such as gasoline, naphtha and diesel, it said.
Russia and Saudi Arabia are the top two exporters of oil through the canal, while India and China are the main importers, oil analytics firm Vortexa said. Consultancy Kpler said the canal accounted for only 4.4% of total oil flows but a prolonged disruption would complicate flows of Russian and Caspian oil to Asia and oil from the Middle East into Europe.
The impact on oil prices has been limited so far as the destination of most oil tankers is Europe, where demand is currently weaker due to a new round of lockdowns.
The deputy managing director of Germany’s BDI industry association, Holger Loesch, expressed concern, saying earlier shipping holdups were already affecting output, especially in industries depending on raw materials or construction supplies.
About 16% of Germany’s chemicals imports arrive by ship via the Suez canal and the chief economist for the association of German chemicals and pharmaceuticals producers VCI, Henrik Meincke, said they would be affected with every day of blockage.
The owner and insurers face claims totalling millions of dollars even if the ship is refloated quickly, industry sources said on Wednesday. Shoei Kisen said the hull insurer of the group is MS&AD Insurance Group while the liability insurer is UK P&I Club.
Suez Canal could be blocked for weeks by 'beached whale' ship
ISMAILIA — A huge container ship blocking the Suez Canal like a “beached whale” may take weeks to free, the salvage company said, as officials stopped all ships ent…
Coconut water when nothing else works for a blockage.
Might want to talk to the person who authorized the vessel to enter that section of the canal under those conditions. Lots of paperwork ahead for this one.
Might want to talk to the person who authorized the vessel to enter that section of the canal under those conditions. Lots of paperwork ahead for this one.
Efforts to free stuck vessel in Suez Canal will resume Saturday
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Nadine Awadalla, Jessica Jaganathan, Roslan Khasawneh and Julia Payne
Publishing date:Mar 26, 2021 • 1 hour ago • 4 minute read • Join the conversation
A satellite image shows stranded container ship Ever Given after it ran aground in Suez Canal, Egypt March 25, 2021.
A satellite image shows stranded container ship Ever Given after it ran aground in Suez Canal, Egypt March 25, 2021. PHOTO BY CNES /AIRBUS DS via REUTERS
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CAIRO — Dredging and tugging aimed at freeing a mega vessel stuck in the Suez Canal failed on Friday to end a blockage that has lifted shipping rates for fuel tankers and scrambled global supply chains for everything from grains to baby clothes.
U.S. President Joe Biden said his administration was looking at what it could do to help, after the 400-metre (430-yard) long Ever Given ran aground in the vital trade waterway on Tuesday due to strong wind.
“We have equipment and capacity that most countries don’t have. And we are seeing what help we can be,” Biden told reporters in Delaware.
A U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the Navy was prepared to send a team of dredging experts to the canal, but was awaiting approval from local authorities.
The latest effort to dislodge the ship with tug boats was suspended late on Friday, and attempts would resume on Saturday, three sources at the canal said. The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) could not immediately be reached for comment.
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Shipping rates for oil product tankers nearly doubled after the ship became stranded, and efforts to free the giant vessel may take weeks and be complicated by unstable weather, threatening costly delays for companies already dealing with COVID-19 restrictions.
All its 25 crew members, who have remained on board, were safe, in good health and spirits, Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM), the Ever Given’s technical manager said.
A Dutch rescue team had confirmed two additional tugs would arrive on March 28 to help dislodge the ship, BSM said.
“There have been no reports of pollution or cargo damage and initial investigations rule out any mechanical or engine failure as a cause of the grounding,” a BSM statement said.
Earlier, the SCA said efforts to free the ship by tug had resumed following the completion of dredging operations at its bow to remove 20,000 cubic metres of sand.
“The tugging operations require the availability of a number of supporting factors including wind direction and tides, which makes it a complex technical process,” the authority said.
The SCA welcomed a U.S. offer to help. Turkey also said it can send a vessel to the canal, amid a push by Ankara to repair ties with Egypt after years of animosity.
The suspension of traffic along the channel linking Europe and Asia has deepened problems for shipping lines.
The blockage could cost global trade $6 billion to $10 billion a week, a study by German insurer Allianz showed on Friday.
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Ratings agency Moody’s expects Europe’s manufacturing and car parts suppliers to be most affected because they operate “just-in-time” supply chains, and said port congestion and further delays to the supply chain were “inevitable.”
Retired British Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe said the best bet for the next attempt would be a high tide on Sunday, but because the ship was aground both front and rear there was a risk the hull could rupture if rescuers pulled too hard.
Mohab Mamish, the Egyptian presidential adviser on Suez Canal projects and sea ports, told MBC Misr TV a floating crane should be used to transfer some of the Ever Given’s containers to another ship to lighten the vessel and enable it to float.
About two dozen ships could be seen from the shores of Port Said on Friday morning, according to a Reuters witness.
Oil rose over 3% on Friday as more than 30 oil tankers have been waiting on either side of the canal since Tuesday, shipping data on Refinitiv showed. However, there is low seasonal demand for crude and liquefied natural gas, which will likely mitigate the impact on prices, analysts said.
About 4 million barrels of mostly Kazakh CPC Blend and some Russian Urals were waiting along with tankers carrying Libyan, Azeri and some North Sea crude oil for Asian refiners, traders said.
Egypt’s SUMED pipeline operator approached crude traders to see whether they wanted to book space in the system but so far traders prefer to wait to avoid high additional costs.
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Analysts expect a greater price impact on smaller tankers carrying oil products, such as naphtha and fuel oil, for export from Europe to Asia, if the canal remains shut for weeks.
Re-routing ships around the Cape of Good Hope could add about two weeks and extra fuel costs to the voyage, said Sri Paravaikkarasu, director for Asia oil at FGE.
The blockage is weighing on the already weak Asian gasoil, or diesel, market. More than 60% of Asian exports to the west flowed via the choked Canal in 2020, according to FGE.
Aframax and Suezmax rates in the Mediterranean have also reacted as the market starts to price in fewer vessels being available in the region, shipbroker Braemar ACM Shipbroking said.
At least four Long-Range 2 tankers that might have been headed toward Suez from the Atlantic basin are now likely to be evaluating a passage around the Cape of Good Hope, Braemar ACM said. Each LR-2 tanker can carry around 75,000 tonnes of oil.
The cost of shipping clean products, such as gasoline and diesel, from the Russian port of Tuapse on the Black Sea to southern France jumped 73% over the last three days to $2.58 a barrel on March 25, according to Refinitiv Eikon data. <TC-TUA-LAV>
The shipping index benchmark for LR2 vessels from the Middle East to Japan, known as TC1, has climbed by a third since last week to 137.5 worldscale points, said Anoop Jayaraj, clean tanker broker at Fearnleys Singapore. Worldscale is an industry tool used to calculate freight rates.
On the crude side, traders have had to pay 10-20% more for replacement tankers but market freight rates have not yet risen as charterers are not ready to commit to higher levels in case the container is freed this weekend, shipbrokers said.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Nadine Awadalla, Jessica Jaganathan, Roslan Khasawneh and Julia Payne
Publishing date:Mar 26, 2021 • 1 hour ago • 4 minute read • Join the conversation
A satellite image shows stranded container ship Ever Given after it ran aground in Suez Canal, Egypt March 25, 2021.
A satellite image shows stranded container ship Ever Given after it ran aground in Suez Canal, Egypt March 25, 2021. PHOTO BY CNES /AIRBUS DS via REUTERS
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CAIRO — Dredging and tugging aimed at freeing a mega vessel stuck in the Suez Canal failed on Friday to end a blockage that has lifted shipping rates for fuel tankers and scrambled global supply chains for everything from grains to baby clothes.
U.S. President Joe Biden said his administration was looking at what it could do to help, after the 400-metre (430-yard) long Ever Given ran aground in the vital trade waterway on Tuesday due to strong wind.
“We have equipment and capacity that most countries don’t have. And we are seeing what help we can be,” Biden told reporters in Delaware.
A U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the Navy was prepared to send a team of dredging experts to the canal, but was awaiting approval from local authorities.
The latest effort to dislodge the ship with tug boats was suspended late on Friday, and attempts would resume on Saturday, three sources at the canal said. The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) could not immediately be reached for comment.
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Shipping rates for oil product tankers nearly doubled after the ship became stranded, and efforts to free the giant vessel may take weeks and be complicated by unstable weather, threatening costly delays for companies already dealing with COVID-19 restrictions.
All its 25 crew members, who have remained on board, were safe, in good health and spirits, Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM), the Ever Given’s technical manager said.
A Dutch rescue team had confirmed two additional tugs would arrive on March 28 to help dislodge the ship, BSM said.
“There have been no reports of pollution or cargo damage and initial investigations rule out any mechanical or engine failure as a cause of the grounding,” a BSM statement said.
Earlier, the SCA said efforts to free the ship by tug had resumed following the completion of dredging operations at its bow to remove 20,000 cubic metres of sand.
“The tugging operations require the availability of a number of supporting factors including wind direction and tides, which makes it a complex technical process,” the authority said.
The SCA welcomed a U.S. offer to help. Turkey also said it can send a vessel to the canal, amid a push by Ankara to repair ties with Egypt after years of animosity.
The suspension of traffic along the channel linking Europe and Asia has deepened problems for shipping lines.
The blockage could cost global trade $6 billion to $10 billion a week, a study by German insurer Allianz showed on Friday.
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Ratings agency Moody’s expects Europe’s manufacturing and car parts suppliers to be most affected because they operate “just-in-time” supply chains, and said port congestion and further delays to the supply chain were “inevitable.”
Retired British Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe said the best bet for the next attempt would be a high tide on Sunday, but because the ship was aground both front and rear there was a risk the hull could rupture if rescuers pulled too hard.
Mohab Mamish, the Egyptian presidential adviser on Suez Canal projects and sea ports, told MBC Misr TV a floating crane should be used to transfer some of the Ever Given’s containers to another ship to lighten the vessel and enable it to float.
About two dozen ships could be seen from the shores of Port Said on Friday morning, according to a Reuters witness.
Oil rose over 3% on Friday as more than 30 oil tankers have been waiting on either side of the canal since Tuesday, shipping data on Refinitiv showed. However, there is low seasonal demand for crude and liquefied natural gas, which will likely mitigate the impact on prices, analysts said.
About 4 million barrels of mostly Kazakh CPC Blend and some Russian Urals were waiting along with tankers carrying Libyan, Azeri and some North Sea crude oil for Asian refiners, traders said.
Egypt’s SUMED pipeline operator approached crude traders to see whether they wanted to book space in the system but so far traders prefer to wait to avoid high additional costs.
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Analysts expect a greater price impact on smaller tankers carrying oil products, such as naphtha and fuel oil, for export from Europe to Asia, if the canal remains shut for weeks.
Re-routing ships around the Cape of Good Hope could add about two weeks and extra fuel costs to the voyage, said Sri Paravaikkarasu, director for Asia oil at FGE.
The blockage is weighing on the already weak Asian gasoil, or diesel, market. More than 60% of Asian exports to the west flowed via the choked Canal in 2020, according to FGE.
Aframax and Suezmax rates in the Mediterranean have also reacted as the market starts to price in fewer vessels being available in the region, shipbroker Braemar ACM Shipbroking said.
At least four Long-Range 2 tankers that might have been headed toward Suez from the Atlantic basin are now likely to be evaluating a passage around the Cape of Good Hope, Braemar ACM said. Each LR-2 tanker can carry around 75,000 tonnes of oil.
The cost of shipping clean products, such as gasoline and diesel, from the Russian port of Tuapse on the Black Sea to southern France jumped 73% over the last three days to $2.58 a barrel on March 25, according to Refinitiv Eikon data. <TC-TUA-LAV>
The shipping index benchmark for LR2 vessels from the Middle East to Japan, known as TC1, has climbed by a third since last week to 137.5 worldscale points, said Anoop Jayaraj, clean tanker broker at Fearnleys Singapore. Worldscale is an industry tool used to calculate freight rates.
On the crude side, traders have had to pay 10-20% more for replacement tankers but market freight rates have not yet risen as charterers are not ready to commit to higher levels in case the container is freed this weekend, shipbrokers said.
Efforts to free stuck vessel in Suez Canal will resume Saturday
CAIRO — Dredging and tugging aimed at freeing a mega vessel stuck in the Suez Canal failed on Friday to end a blockage that has lifted shipping rates for fuel tanke…
I would try dynamite. Just enough to break the suction. Works well for getting equipment out of mud and frozen ground.
Ship blocking Suez Canal moves slightly, unclear when it will refloat
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Publishing date:Mar 27, 2021 • 2 hours ago • 3 minute read • Join the conversation
This satellite imagery released by Maxar Technologies shows tug boats and dredgers attempting to free the MV Ever Given on March 26, 2021, in the Suez Canal.
This satellite imagery released by Maxar Technologies shows tug boats and dredgers attempting to free the MV Ever Given on March 26, 2021, in the Suez Canal. PHOTO BY SATELLITE IMAGE ©2021 MAXAR TECH /AFP via Getty Images
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SUEZ — Efforts to dislodge a giant container ship blocking the Suez Canal have allowed its stern and rudder to move, but it remains unclear when the vessel will be refloated, the head of the canal authority said on Saturday.
The 400 meter (430 yard) long Ever Given became wedged diagonally across a southern section of the canal amid high winds early on Tuesday, blocking one of the world’s busiest waterways.
A combination of dredging material from around the ship and pulling and pushing the vessel with tugboats made minor progress in dislodging the ship on Saturday, two SCA sources said. One source said there had been some movement at the bow of the ship.
Suez Canal Authority (SCA) Chairman Osama Rabie told local TV that water had started running underneath the ship. “We expect that at any time the ship could slide and move from the spot it is in,” he told a press conference earlier.
About 15% of world shipping traffic transits the canal and hundreds of vessels are waiting to pass once the blockage has been cleared.
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Rabie said he hoped it would not be necessary to remove some of the 18,300 containers on board to lighten the ship’s load, but strong tides and winds were complicating efforts to free it.
“The ship’s stern began (on Friday) to move towards Suez, and that was a positive sign until 11 p.m. (2100 GMT) at night, but the tide fell significantly and we stopped,” Rabie told journalists in Suez.
Dredgers removed some 20,000 tonnes of sand from around its bow by Friday. A Dutch firm working to free the vessel said it could be freed by the start of next week if heavier tugboats, dredging and a high tide succeed in dislodging it.
Tugging attempts restarted on Saturday afternoon and further efforts were planned for Sunday, SCA sources said, though they added more sand may need to be removed from around the ship to free it.
A shipping agent in Port Said said the SCA had notified agencies to prepare for the possible entry of new ships into the canal, while a shipping source said the SCA had outlined a plan for the rapid transit of 133 vessels once the Ever Given was freed.
HEAVY TUGBOATS
The head of Boskalis, parent company of Dutch firm Smit Salvage which has been brought in to help the SCA, said heavy tugboats with a combined capacity of 400 tonnes would arrive sometime this weekend.
“We aim to get it done after the weekend, but everything will have to work out exactly right for that,” Boskalis Chief Executive Peter Berdowski told Dutch TV program Nieuwsuur late on Friday.
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Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly on Saturday thanked foreign partners for offers to help refloat the ship.
Shipping rates for oil product tankers nearly doubled after the ship became stranded, and the blockage has disrupted global supply chains, threatening costly delays for companies already dealing with COVID-19 restrictions.
If the blockage drags on, shippers may decide to reroute their cargoes around the Cape of Good Hope, adding about two weeks to journeys and extra fuel costs. Rabie said the ships that are waiting were free to reroute, but none had yet done so.
He said 321 vessels were waiting to enter or continue their transit through the canal. Those included dozens of container ships, bulk carriers and liquefied natural gas (LNG) or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) vessels, according to a shipping source.
Fourteen tugs have so far been involved in efforts to refloat the Ever Given, although Boskalis and Smit Salvage have warned that using too much force to tug the ship could damage it.
Berdowski said a land crane could lighten the Ever Given’s load by removing containers, though experts have warned that such a process could be complex and lengthy.
“If we don’t succeed in getting it loose next week, we will have to remove some 600 containers from the bow to reduce the weight,” he said. “That will set us back days at least, because where to leave all those containers will be quite a puzzle.”
Rabie said empty container ships with cranes could offload cargo.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Publishing date:Mar 27, 2021 • 2 hours ago • 3 minute read • Join the conversation
This satellite imagery released by Maxar Technologies shows tug boats and dredgers attempting to free the MV Ever Given on March 26, 2021, in the Suez Canal.
This satellite imagery released by Maxar Technologies shows tug boats and dredgers attempting to free the MV Ever Given on March 26, 2021, in the Suez Canal. PHOTO BY SATELLITE IMAGE ©2021 MAXAR TECH /AFP via Getty Images
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SUEZ — Efforts to dislodge a giant container ship blocking the Suez Canal have allowed its stern and rudder to move, but it remains unclear when the vessel will be refloated, the head of the canal authority said on Saturday.
The 400 meter (430 yard) long Ever Given became wedged diagonally across a southern section of the canal amid high winds early on Tuesday, blocking one of the world’s busiest waterways.
A combination of dredging material from around the ship and pulling and pushing the vessel with tugboats made minor progress in dislodging the ship on Saturday, two SCA sources said. One source said there had been some movement at the bow of the ship.
Suez Canal Authority (SCA) Chairman Osama Rabie told local TV that water had started running underneath the ship. “We expect that at any time the ship could slide and move from the spot it is in,” he told a press conference earlier.
About 15% of world shipping traffic transits the canal and hundreds of vessels are waiting to pass once the blockage has been cleared.
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Rabie said he hoped it would not be necessary to remove some of the 18,300 containers on board to lighten the ship’s load, but strong tides and winds were complicating efforts to free it.
“The ship’s stern began (on Friday) to move towards Suez, and that was a positive sign until 11 p.m. (2100 GMT) at night, but the tide fell significantly and we stopped,” Rabie told journalists in Suez.
Dredgers removed some 20,000 tonnes of sand from around its bow by Friday. A Dutch firm working to free the vessel said it could be freed by the start of next week if heavier tugboats, dredging and a high tide succeed in dislodging it.
Tugging attempts restarted on Saturday afternoon and further efforts were planned for Sunday, SCA sources said, though they added more sand may need to be removed from around the ship to free it.
A shipping agent in Port Said said the SCA had notified agencies to prepare for the possible entry of new ships into the canal, while a shipping source said the SCA had outlined a plan for the rapid transit of 133 vessels once the Ever Given was freed.
HEAVY TUGBOATS
The head of Boskalis, parent company of Dutch firm Smit Salvage which has been brought in to help the SCA, said heavy tugboats with a combined capacity of 400 tonnes would arrive sometime this weekend.
“We aim to get it done after the weekend, but everything will have to work out exactly right for that,” Boskalis Chief Executive Peter Berdowski told Dutch TV program Nieuwsuur late on Friday.
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Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly on Saturday thanked foreign partners for offers to help refloat the ship.
Shipping rates for oil product tankers nearly doubled after the ship became stranded, and the blockage has disrupted global supply chains, threatening costly delays for companies already dealing with COVID-19 restrictions.
If the blockage drags on, shippers may decide to reroute their cargoes around the Cape of Good Hope, adding about two weeks to journeys and extra fuel costs. Rabie said the ships that are waiting were free to reroute, but none had yet done so.
He said 321 vessels were waiting to enter or continue their transit through the canal. Those included dozens of container ships, bulk carriers and liquefied natural gas (LNG) or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) vessels, according to a shipping source.
Fourteen tugs have so far been involved in efforts to refloat the Ever Given, although Boskalis and Smit Salvage have warned that using too much force to tug the ship could damage it.
Berdowski said a land crane could lighten the Ever Given’s load by removing containers, though experts have warned that such a process could be complex and lengthy.
“If we don’t succeed in getting it loose next week, we will have to remove some 600 containers from the bow to reduce the weight,” he said. “That will set us back days at least, because where to leave all those containers will be quite a puzzle.”
Rabie said empty container ships with cranes could offload cargo.
Ship blocking Suez Canal moves slightly, unclear when it will refloat
SUEZ — Efforts to dislodge a giant container ship blocking the Suez Canal have allowed its stern and rudder to move, but it remains unclear when the vessel will be …
Efforts to free ship blocking Suez Canal continue with tugs, dredgers
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Yusri Mohamed
Publishing date:Mar 28, 2021 • 1 hour ago • 4 minute read • Join the conversation
Stranded ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, is seen after it ran aground, in Suez Canal, Egypt, March 28, 2021.
Stranded ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, is seen after it ran aground, in Suez Canal, Egypt, March 28, 2021. PHOTO BY SUEZ CANAL AUTHORITY /Handout via REUTERS
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ISMAILIA — Suez Canal salvage teams intensified excavation and dredging on Sunday around a massive container ship blocking the busy waterway ahead of attempts to refloat it, with two sources saying work had been complicated by rock under the ship’s bow.
Diggers were working to remove parts of the canal’s bank and expand dredging close to the ship’s bow to a depth of 18 meters (19.7 yards), the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) said in a statement.
There was no mention of new attempts to release the ship with tugs, though canal officials and sources had said they were hoping to take advantage of high tides on Sunday and Monday to dislodge the vessel.
A specialist tug registered in the Netherlands arrived and would join efforts to refloat the ship on Sunday evening, the ship’s technical manager Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM) said.
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has ordered preparations for the possible removal of some of the ship’s 18,300 containers, SCA Chairman Osama Rabie told Egypt’s Extra News.
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Any operation to lighten the ship’s load would not start before Monday, an SCA source said, as salvage teams try to maneuver the ship free before high tides recede next week.
The 400-meter (430-yard) long Ever Given became jammed diagonally across a southern section of the canal in high winds early on Tuesday, halting shipping traffic on the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia.
At least 369 vessels are waiting to transit the canal, Rabie said, including dozens of container ships, bulk carriers, oil tankers and liquefied natural gas (LNG) or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) vessels.
Shippers affected by the blockage may be offered discounts, Rabie said, adding that he believed investigations would show the canal was not responsible for grounding the Ever Given, one of the world’s biggest container ships.
Rescue workers from the SCA and a team from Dutch firm Smit Salvage have been weighing how much tugging power they can use on the ship without risking damage, and whether some cargo will need to be removed by crane in order to re-float it.
Experts have warned that such a process could be complex and lengthy. Rabie said he hoped it would not be necessary, but that Egypt would take up offers of international assistance if it did switch to that strategy.
A ballast tank at the bow of the ship has been damaged, and the vessel will have to be inspected once it is freed, two people familiar with the salvage operation said.
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Suction pumps have been deployed to expel water from the tank, SCA sources said, and one of the sources said divers had been working to repair the hole.
SOIL EXPERTS
Dredging has so far shifted at least 27,000 cubic meters of sand and mud from around the ship, the SCA said earlier on Sunday.
However, two SCA sources told Reuters that a mass of rock had been found at the bow of the ship, complicating salvage efforts. That appeared to be confirmed by the focus late on Sunday on digging to remove the lining of the canal around the ship’s front.
Soil experts are on-site to advise on recovery efforts and a further dredger was expected to arrive by March 30, BSM said.
From the dredging done so far it was still unclear whether the ship was stuck on soft sand, compact sand or clay, which will determine how easily it may shift free, said one official involved in the salvage operation.
Two new and powerful tugs expected to be in use by Monday could provide a boost. “We believe that is what you are going to need in terms of horsepower … to have a decent attempt, a decent chance of trying to float her,” the official said.
The latest efforts come after officials said some progress had been made on Friday and Saturday.
“The rudder was not moving and it is now moving, the propeller is working now, there was no water underneath the bow, and now there is water under it, and yesterday there was a 4-meter deviation in the bow and the stern,” Rabie told Egyptian state TV.
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About 15% of world shipping traffic transits the Suez Canal, which is a key source of foreign currency revenue for Egypt. The current stoppage is costing the canal $14-15 million daily.
Shipping rates for oil product tankers nearly doubled after the ship became stranded, and the blockage has disrupted global supply chains, threatening costly delays for companies already dealing with COVID-19 restrictions.
If the blockage drags on, shippers may decide to reroute their cargoes around the Cape of Good Hope, adding about two weeks to journeys and extra fuel costs.
A note from A.P. Moeller Maersk seen by Reuters said it had so far redirected 15 vessels around the Cape after calculating that the journey would be equal to the current delay of sailing to Suez and queuing.
The SCA has said it can accelerate convoys through the canal once the Ever Given is freed.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Yusri Mohamed
Publishing date:Mar 28, 2021 • 1 hour ago • 4 minute read • Join the conversation
Stranded ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, is seen after it ran aground, in Suez Canal, Egypt, March 28, 2021.
Stranded ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, is seen after it ran aground, in Suez Canal, Egypt, March 28, 2021. PHOTO BY SUEZ CANAL AUTHORITY /Handout via REUTERS
Article content
ISMAILIA — Suez Canal salvage teams intensified excavation and dredging on Sunday around a massive container ship blocking the busy waterway ahead of attempts to refloat it, with two sources saying work had been complicated by rock under the ship’s bow.
Diggers were working to remove parts of the canal’s bank and expand dredging close to the ship’s bow to a depth of 18 meters (19.7 yards), the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) said in a statement.
There was no mention of new attempts to release the ship with tugs, though canal officials and sources had said they were hoping to take advantage of high tides on Sunday and Monday to dislodge the vessel.
A specialist tug registered in the Netherlands arrived and would join efforts to refloat the ship on Sunday evening, the ship’s technical manager Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM) said.
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has ordered preparations for the possible removal of some of the ship’s 18,300 containers, SCA Chairman Osama Rabie told Egypt’s Extra News.
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Any operation to lighten the ship’s load would not start before Monday, an SCA source said, as salvage teams try to maneuver the ship free before high tides recede next week.
The 400-meter (430-yard) long Ever Given became jammed diagonally across a southern section of the canal in high winds early on Tuesday, halting shipping traffic on the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia.
At least 369 vessels are waiting to transit the canal, Rabie said, including dozens of container ships, bulk carriers, oil tankers and liquefied natural gas (LNG) or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) vessels.
Shippers affected by the blockage may be offered discounts, Rabie said, adding that he believed investigations would show the canal was not responsible for grounding the Ever Given, one of the world’s biggest container ships.
Rescue workers from the SCA and a team from Dutch firm Smit Salvage have been weighing how much tugging power they can use on the ship without risking damage, and whether some cargo will need to be removed by crane in order to re-float it.
Experts have warned that such a process could be complex and lengthy. Rabie said he hoped it would not be necessary, but that Egypt would take up offers of international assistance if it did switch to that strategy.
A ballast tank at the bow of the ship has been damaged, and the vessel will have to be inspected once it is freed, two people familiar with the salvage operation said.
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Suction pumps have been deployed to expel water from the tank, SCA sources said, and one of the sources said divers had been working to repair the hole.
SOIL EXPERTS
Dredging has so far shifted at least 27,000 cubic meters of sand and mud from around the ship, the SCA said earlier on Sunday.
However, two SCA sources told Reuters that a mass of rock had been found at the bow of the ship, complicating salvage efforts. That appeared to be confirmed by the focus late on Sunday on digging to remove the lining of the canal around the ship’s front.
Soil experts are on-site to advise on recovery efforts and a further dredger was expected to arrive by March 30, BSM said.
From the dredging done so far it was still unclear whether the ship was stuck on soft sand, compact sand or clay, which will determine how easily it may shift free, said one official involved in the salvage operation.
Two new and powerful tugs expected to be in use by Monday could provide a boost. “We believe that is what you are going to need in terms of horsepower … to have a decent attempt, a decent chance of trying to float her,” the official said.
The latest efforts come after officials said some progress had been made on Friday and Saturday.
“The rudder was not moving and it is now moving, the propeller is working now, there was no water underneath the bow, and now there is water under it, and yesterday there was a 4-meter deviation in the bow and the stern,” Rabie told Egyptian state TV.
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About 15% of world shipping traffic transits the Suez Canal, which is a key source of foreign currency revenue for Egypt. The current stoppage is costing the canal $14-15 million daily.
Shipping rates for oil product tankers nearly doubled after the ship became stranded, and the blockage has disrupted global supply chains, threatening costly delays for companies already dealing with COVID-19 restrictions.
If the blockage drags on, shippers may decide to reroute their cargoes around the Cape of Good Hope, adding about two weeks to journeys and extra fuel costs.
A note from A.P. Moeller Maersk seen by Reuters said it had so far redirected 15 vessels around the Cape after calculating that the journey would be equal to the current delay of sailing to Suez and queuing.
The SCA has said it can accelerate convoys through the canal once the Ever Given is freed.
Efforts to free ship blocking Suez Canal continue with tugs, dredgers
ISMAILIA — Suez Canal salvage teams intensified excavation and dredging on Sunday around a massive container ship blocking the busy waterway ahead of attempts to re…
Suez Canal: Ever Given container ship finally freed
BBC NewsMonday 29th March 2021
A giant container ship that blocked the Suez Canal for nearly a week has finally been freed after a mammoth salvage operation.
Tug boats honked their horns in celebration as the 400m-long (1,300ft) Ever Given was dislodged on Monday.
Traffic is set to resume in both directions through the canal at 19:00 local time (17:00 GMT), according to local authorities.
Hundreds of ships are waiting to pass through.
Suez, which connects the Mediterranean to the Red Sea through Egypt, is one of the world's busiest trade routes.
Peter Berdowski, CEO of Dutch salvage company Boskalis, said the Ever Given had been refloated at 15:05 (13:05 GMT) on Monday, "thereby making free passage through the Suez Canal possible again".
The vessel was being towed for safety checks to Great Bitter Lake, which sits between two sections of the canal to the north of where the ship got stuck.
Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi thanked Egyptians for their efforts in "ending the crisis" in the canal.
Disruption to global trade will not end with the refloating of the Ever Given. According to Lloyd's List, there are currently more than 370 ships waiting to pass through the canal, including container vessels, tankers, and bulk carriers. Clearing that backlog is expected to take several days.
Some ships have already left the region, preferring to take an alternative, longer route around the southern tip of Africa. They will be joined by other vessels travelling from East Asia to Europe - whose operators have decided not to risk waiting for the canal to reopen.
Inevitably, cargoes will be reaching their destination much later than planned. There may be congestion when they arrive in port, while future sailing schedules have been thrown into disarray.
The cost of shipping goods to Europe is expected to rise as a result. Industry experts are warning that the knock-on effects on delicately balanced supply chains could be felt for months to come.
Suez Canal reopens after giant stranded ship is freed
It took almost a week to dislodge a giant container ship blocking one the world's busiest trade routes.
www.bbc.co.uk
Is the Pharaoh's curse coming true? Social media users blame Suez ship crisis and two other disasters in Egypt last week on plans to move 22 mummies including King Ramesses II and Queen Ahmose-Nefertari
Egypt announced plans to transport 22 mummies from one museum to another next month, including those of King Ramses II and Queen Ahmose-Nefertari. News of the parade was followed by a number of disasters including a giant ship blocking the Suez Canal, a fatal train accident and fires across the country. Social media users are blaming such events on the curse of the pharaohs that says: 'Death will come on quick wings for those who disturb the king's peace.'
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