Ship Partially “Refloated’ After Nearly a Week Blocking Suez Canal

The massive tanker blocking the Suez Canal has been
refloated.

Suez Canal Authority chairman Osama said Monday that tugs
dislodged the bow of the ship from the eastern bank of the canal,
the Wall Street Journal reported.

“We are not finished yet, but it has moved,” he said.

It’s believed the ship has moved about 22 metres and tugboats
are expected to continue assisting the ship to ensure it can
continue moving up the canal.

It’s unclear how long it will take the re-open the waterway to
traffic.

In a tweet, Inchcape Shipping said the MV Ever Given was
successfully refloated at 4.30am (local time).

“She is being secured at the moment. More information about next
steps will follow once they are known,” the post said.

Maritime traffic tracking sites Vesselfinder and myshiptracking
also showed the stern of the boat had moved away from the canal’s
western bank.

People can be heard saying “Allahu Akbar” (God is most great)
and celebrating the achievement in footage posted on Twitter. Other
footage showed the captain of a nearby ship giving a thumbs up as
the Ever Given finally started moving.

However, The Citizen Lab senior researcher John Scott-Railton
tweeted an image that shows most of the vessel is still not in the
navigation channel.

‘A good sign’

The ship became jammed about a week ago after veering off course
and running aground in a sandstorm.

It forced Egypt to abruptly one of the world’s busiest shipping
lanes, impacting 10 per cent of global trade, as authorities try to
dislodge it.

Some experts had warned the shutdown could last weeks, forcing
ships to re-route around the southern tip of Africa, making their
journeys significantly longer.

Suez Canal Authority (SCA) chief Osama Rabie told an Egyptian
news channel the ship had moved from side to side for the first
time late Saturday.

“It is a good sign,” he said, adding that 14 tugboats were
deployed around the stricken vessel and salvage crews were working
round the clock.

Authorities decided on Sunday more tugboats would be needed to
free the mammoth ship.

Leth agencies, which provides crossing services to clients using
the canal, said on Twitter late Sunday that the Suez Canal
Authority (SCA) had postponed the attempt.

“SCA has decided to postpone the next refloating attempt until
sufficient tug power is in place,” it said, adding “a likely time
for the next attempt is Monday evening”.

The SCA did not confirm the news, saying in a statement earlier
in the day that “operations have been stepped up around the bow of
the ship”.

Richard Meade, an editor at shipping data and news company
Lloyd’s List, said sources close to the salvage operation had
voiced optimism “that the vessel could be moved within the next
24-48 hours”.

Salvage teams are pressing efforts to remove sand around the
ship, with 27,000 cubic metres cleared so far at a depth of 18
metres, SCA spokesman George Safwat said Sunday.

But Ihab Talaat el-Bannane, a former Egyptian admiral, cautioned
that the accident had taken place in a part of the canal where the
ground was rocky and difficult to dig.

“At some point, the ground experts will have to stop digging to
avoid earth collapsing onto the ship,” he said.

The area has been placed under tight security, with extra
military and police personnel deployed.

Egyptian media reported President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi had
ordered “preparations” to offload containers in order to lighten
the ship.

Human error could be to blame

The 200,000-tonne MV Ever Given, longer than four football
fields, has been wedged diagonally across the canal since Tuesday,
towering over nearby palm trees and strangling world supply
chains.

Officials blaming 40-knot gusts and a sandstorm but Mr Rabie on
Saturday said “technical or human errors” could have led to the
grounding of the Taiwan-run, Panama-flagged container ship near the
southern end of the 193-kilometre long canal.

The crisis has forced companies to choose between waiting or
rerouting vessels around Africa, which adds a huge fuel bill, 9000
kilometres and over a week of travel to the trip between Asia and
Europe.

Lloyd’s List has said the blockage is holding up an estimated
$9.6 billion-worth of cargo each day between Asia and Europe.

Each day of the blockade could be costing global trade some
$6-10 billion, according to a study published Friday by German
insurer Allianz.

That translates to some 0.2 to 0.4 percentage points of annual
trade growth each week.

And with over 300 ships and billions of dollars-worth of cargo
now stalled at the entrances to the Suez Canal, many operators have
already rerouted vessels around the Cape of Good Hope.

There has been a “surge” in the number of vessels opting for the
African route, Lloyd’s List said Sunday.

“Most major container lines are now diverting ships round Cape
of Good Hope and warning of supply chain disruption ahead. Some are
starting to reject bookings,” it said on Twitter.

with AFP

The massive tanker blocking the Suez Canal has been
refloated.

Suez Canal Authority chairman Osama said Monday that tugs
dislodged the bow of the ship from the eastern bank of the canal,
the Wall Street Journal reported.

“We are not finished yet, but it has moved,” he said.

It’s believed the ship has moved about 22 metres and tugboats
are expected to continue assisting the ship to ensure it can
continue moving up the canal.

It’s unclear how long it will take the re-open the waterway to
traffic.

In a tweet, Inchcape Shipping said the MV Ever Given was
successfully refloated at 4.30am (local time).

“She is being secured at the moment. More information about next
steps will follow once they are known,” the post said.

Maritime traffic tracking sites Vesselfinder and myshiptracking
also showed the stern of the boat had moved away from the canal’s
western bank.

People can be heard saying “Allahu Akbar” (God is most great)
and celebrating the achievement in footage posted on Twitter. Other
footage showed the captain of a nearby ship giving a thumbs up as
the Ever Given finally started moving.

However, The Citizen Lab senior researcher John Scott-Railton
tweeted an image that shows most of the vessel is still not in the
navigation channel.

‘A good sign’

The ship became jammed about a week ago after veering off course
and running aground in a sandstorm.

It forced Egypt to abruptly one of the world’s busiest shipping
lanes, impacting 10 per cent of global trade, as authorities try to
dislodge it.

Some experts had warned the shutdown could last weeks, forcing
ships to re-route around the southern tip of Africa, making their
journeys significantly longer.

Suez Canal Authority (SCA) chief Osama Rabie told an Egyptian
news channel the ship had moved from side to side for the first
time late Saturday.

“It is a good sign,” he said, adding that 14 tugboats were
deployed around the stricken vessel and salvage crews were working
round the clock.

Authorities decided on Sunday more tugboats would be needed to
free the mammoth ship.

Leth agencies, which provides crossing services to clients using
the canal, said on Twitter late Sunday that the Suez Canal
Authority (SCA) had postponed the attempt.

“SCA has decided to postpone the next refloating attempt until
sufficient tug power is in place,” it said, adding “a likely time
for the next attempt is Monday evening”.

The SCA did not confirm the news, saying in a statement earlier
in the day that “operations have been stepped up around the bow of
the ship”.

Richard Meade, an editor at shipping data and news company
Lloyd’s List, said sources close to the salvage operation had
voiced optimism “that the vessel could be moved within the next
24-48 hours”.

Salvage teams are pressing efforts to remove sand around the
ship, with 27,000 cubic metres cleared so far at a depth of 18
metres, SCA spokesman George Safwat said Sunday.

But Ihab Talaat el-Bannane, a former Egyptian admiral, cautioned
that the accident had taken place in a part of the canal where the
ground was rocky and difficult to dig.

“At some point, the ground experts will have to stop digging to
avoid earth collapsing onto the ship,” he said.

The area has been placed under tight security, with extra
military and police personnel deployed.

Egyptian media reported President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi had
ordered “preparations” to offload containers in order to lighten
the ship.

Human error could be to blame

The 200,000-tonne MV Ever Given, longer than four football
fields, has been wedged diagonally across the canal since Tuesday,
towering over nearby palm trees and strangling world supply
chains.

Officials blaming 40-knot gusts and a sandstorm but Mr Rabie on
Saturday said “technical or human errors” could have led to the
grounding of the Taiwan-run, Panama-flagged container ship near the
southern end of the 193-kilometre long canal.

The crisis has forced companies to choose between waiting or
rerouting vessels around Africa, which adds a huge fuel bill, 9000
kilometres and over a week of travel to the trip between Asia and
Europe.

Lloyd’s List has said the blockage is holding up an estimated
$9.6 billion-worth of cargo each day between Asia and Europe.

Each day of the blockade could be costing global trade some
$6-10 billion, according to a study published Friday by German
insurer Allianz.

That translates to some 0.2 to 0.4 percentage points of annual
trade growth each week.

And with over 300 ships and billions of dollars-worth of cargo
now stalled at the entrances to the Suez Canal, many operators have
already rerouted vessels around the Cape of Good Hope.

There has been a “surge” in the number of vessels opting for the
African route, Lloyd’s List said Sunday.

“Most major container lines are now diverting ships round Cape
of Good Hope and warning of supply chain disruption ahead. Some are
starting to reject bookings,” it said on Twitter.

with AFP