- The build-up of ships waiting at the just-reopened Suez Canal could trigger a capacity plunge of up to 30 percent in the comings weeks, says Maersk.
- Container lines and analysts project weeks and months of turmoil in the container sector.
- The blocking of the Suez Canal and the large build-up of ships outside of the canal will likely make capacity plunge by 20 to 30 percent in the coming weeks.
Capacity is expected to dive in the coming weeks
Maersk confirms to ShippingWatch that capacity is expected to dive in the coming weeks, noting that it could take up to a week alone to send the many waiting ships through the recently reopened waterway that links the Red Sea to the Mediterranean.
However, the shipping line is still waiting to see concretely how many ships can transit the canal on a daily basis now, and how much congestion will hit ports further on in the Mediterranean and in Europe generally, before it can make more precise estimates for the recovery time, a spokesperson tells ShippingWatch.
Delays could have an impact
At this point in time, we estimate that the delays could have an impact on our ocean network capacity for the coming several weeks.
“We are doing our utmost to mitigate the impact and contingency plans are still being made, but the loss of capacity to be 20-30 percent over multiple weeks, depending on market dynamics,” writes the container line Tuesday.
Clean-up will take at least six days
The Suez Canal was completely blocked for a total of six days, as ultra-large container ship Ever Given was jammed sideways and preventing ships from traversing the vital water passage.
Maersk expects it will take “at least six days” to handle the close to 400 ships that were waiting outside of the canal before dredgers and tugs were able to dig the ship out on Monday.
“The canal has now been blocked for six days, so it will take at least six days to clear the queue at the canal. This will put further pressure on capacity, and there will now also be queues at ports in the Mediterranean and in Europe,” said a Maersk spokesperson yesterday.
Severe impact in next few weeks
The announcement from Maersk comes few days after its alliance partner MSC stated that the impact of the blockage would be severe.
“There’s no doubt that the current Suez Canal blockage is going to result in one of the biggest disruptions to global trade in recent years, and we are working around the clock to manage our fleet and services so we can keep cargo moving and keep trade flowing as best we can under the circumstances,” said Caroline Becquart, Senior Vice President and head of Asia & 2M service network, Mediterranean Shipping Company, in a statement Saturday.
Severe repercussions for months
In a comment to ShippingWatch Monday, Lars Jensen, CEO of Seaintelligence Consulting, explained why the refloating of Ever Given is just the first and minor step in the recovery of the global supply chain after the Suez Canal incident.
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Source : Shipping Watch
