Large Boxships Trapped in Red Sea Head North for Expensive Return Through Suez

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Wednesday December 20, 2023

Several large boxships that had moved south through the Suez Canal, only to be trapped in the Red Sea by threats to shipping around the Baab al-Mandab, are now heading north for an expensive return through the waterway.

Container analyst Lars Jensen, CEO of consultancy Vespucci Maritime, noted the development in a LinkedIn post on Tuesday.

"This shows the carriers do not believe the situation will be resolved in the next two weeks," Jensen said.

These ships faced two options: either to wait until it was safe to resume their southbound voyage, or to pay more in Suez transit fees and bunker costs to return north and then voyage around Africa.

The latter option could end up costing these vessels more than $2 million each, Jensen said.

"It is certainly understandable why the carriers were waiting since Friday hoping for a resolution," he said.

"However, the fact that they are now northbound towards Suez, and hence choosing option 2, also shows that the large container carriers do not believe the situation will be resolved within the next two weeks.

"If they believed that, then they should have kept waiting."

Ship & Bunker News Team
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