EMEA News
Maersk Boxship Completes Transit Through Southern Red Sea
A container ship owned by AP Moller-Maersk has completed its transit through the southern Red Sea, in a sign of the increasing normalisation of the use of the Suez Canal.
The 6,500 TEU Maersk Sebarok passed through the Red Sea last week on its way to the US, the company said in a statement on its website.
The firm does not currently have any additional sailings planned through the Red Sea, but the Suez Canal Authority has previously said it is working with Maersk towards a normalisation of its use of the key maritime chokepoint.
"Whilst this is a significant step forward, it does not mean that we are at a point where we are considering a wider East-West network change back to the trans-Suez corridor," the company said.
"Assuming that security thresholds continue to be met, we are considering continuing our stepwise approach towards gradually resuming navigation along the East-West corridor via the Suez Canal and the Red Sea.
"The first step is this initial sailing, followed by a limited number of additional trans-Suez sailings. However, there are no planned sailings currently."
Leading shipping companies have been avoiding the Red Sea and Suez Canal for the past two years in response to Houthi attacks near the coast of Yemen, favouring longer voyages around Africa instead.
This has delivered a significant boost to global bunker demand, an effect that is likely to be diminished next year as Suez transits become more widespread.
