Meanwhile backlog at the Suez Canal could be cleared and operations are back to a normal level.
The EVER GIVEN still anchors at the Great Bitter Lake, investigations if the vessel can commence its voyage to Europe safely as planned are ongoing, waiting for authority approvals.
Due the incident and expenditures occurred for salvage of the vessel and cargo, General Average has been declared, a common procedure based on international maritime law.
The exact impacts on global supply chains are still difficult to predict. But it is expected that due to increased peaks at European and Asian ports, not only vessel operations could be delayed, but also Rail and Truck operations for inland transport to final destinations.
Existing challenges in regards to vessel space, container availability, decreasing schedule reliability and related delays will probably deteriorate.
On March 29, 2021 in the afternoon the salvage works have finally been successful and the EVER GIVEN could be freed. After almost one week the vessel is now floating again and has arrived at the Great Bitter Lake where further inspections are undertaken.
Although the Suez Canal is cleared now and back to operations, it will take several days until the backlog on both sides of the Canal is cleared. Many Shipping Lines have meanwhile reacted and sent several vessels on the route via the Cape of Good Hope which increases the transit time to Europe by approx. 7-10 days.
Exact delays cannot be calculated yet, but it is expected that the impact to global supply chains will last several weeks or even months.
If you have questions concerning your specific transport, contact your local representative.
The salvage work on the EVER GIVEN is progressing positively: in the early morning of March 29, 2021, according to press reports, the rear end of the vessel could be towed free. But it seems it is only floating partially and the front end of the vessel is still stuck.
Salvage work and inspection regarding damage are currently ongoing. It might take some more days until the vessel can be freed completely and safely towed to the next port . It is not yet clear when the Suez Canal is going back to normal operations and waiting vessels can transit.
We will keep you informed once any further information is available!
On 23.03.2021 ( 7.40 local time ) the Container Vessel EVER GIVEN ( 400 meters long, 59 meters wide ) ran aground in the Suez Canal.
With a capacity of 20.000 TEU it is one of the worlds largest container vessels and was on its way from Asia to Europe for the Shipping Line Evergreen Marine, Taiwan. Evergreen is part of the OCEAN Alliance which includes CMA CGM, COSCO Shipping and OOCL.
Exact reasons for the incident are under investigation and salvage works are in progress. Due to the blockage not only vessels being in the Canal at the same time are concerned, but also vessel waiting for the passage at both sides of the canal as well as vessels planned in the coming days.
Depending on how long the salvage works will take, massive delays could occur and have further negative impacts on the currently anyways heavily stressed global supply chains. Exact impacts are not known yet.
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact our local Gebrüder Weiss Air & Sea offices.
