Cargo ship stuck in Egypt’s Suez Canal affects shipping worldwide

Efforts to dislodge one of the world’s largest container vessels that has choked traffic along the Suez Canal have resumed at high tide, with five tugs working to drag the vessel to deeper water, according to ship-tracking data.

Marine services firm GAC issued a note to clients overnight on Wednesday, saying efforts to free the vessel using tug boats continued, but that wind conditions and the sheer size of the vessel “were hindering the operation”.

Oil, gas shipments affected

Tuesday marked the second major incident involving the Ever Given in recent years. In 2019, the cargo ship ran into a small ferry moored on the Elbe River in the German port city of Hamburg. Authorities at the time blamed strong wind for the collision, which severely damaged the ferry.

150 ships waiting for the blockage to clear

Several dozen vessels, including other large container ships, tankers carrying oil and gas, and bulk vessels hauling grain are waiting backed up at either end of the canal, creating one of the worst shipping jams seen in years.

Roughly 30 percent of the world’s daily shipping container volume transits through the 193km (120-mile) Suez Canal, and about 12 percent of total global trade of all goods.

Canal service provider Leth Agencies said at least 150 ships were waiting for the Ever Given to be cleared, including vessels near Port Said on the Mediterranean Sea, and the port of Suez on the Red Sea and those already stuck in the canal system on Egypt’s Great Bitter Lake.

Cargo ships already behind the Ever Given in the canal will be reversed south back to Suez to free up the channel, Leth Agencies said. Authorities hope to do the same with the Ever Given when they can free it.