Commercial impact due to blockade of the Suez Canal 2:30
(CNN) -
Efforts to dislodge the massive container ship stuck in the Suez Canal intensified on Saturday as the backlog of ships increases at both ends of the important waterway, raising concerns about the impact of the blockade on global supply chains.
The Ever Given, a container ship almost as long as the Empire State Building is tall, ran aground in the Egyptian Channel Tuesday after being caught in 40-knot winds and a sandstorm.
Since then, the dredgers have worked to remove large amounts of sand and mud from the port side of the 224,000-ton ship's bow.
An experienced Suez Canal pilot told CNN that the giant container ship could be evicted Saturday night.
The pilot, who is not authorized to speak to the media but works for the Suez Canal Authority (SCA), believes that several factors now contribute to the anticipated success of the rescue operation, including the near completion of dredging work, an expected high tide and the availability of powerful tugs.
advertising
LOOK: PHOTOS |
Stuck ship causes Suez Canal blockage
High tide, expected at 10 pm local (4 pm Miami time), is an important factor in the rescue operation.
Other attempts in recent days have failed.
A team of salvage experts from the Dutch firm SMIT Salvage and Japan's Nippon Salvage, who have worked on several high-profile operations in the past, have been appointed to help the SCA refloat the ship, Evergreen Marine said in a statement.
Authorities say they have managed to remove nearly 19,990 cubic meters of sand to free Ever Given.
When asked if the authorities had other plans in the event of a failure, the official told CNN: "This is our only option at this time."
At a press conference on Saturday, SCA President Osama Rabie gave details of the rescue operation, which he described as "technically difficult" and "involving many factors."
MORE: Why the Suez Canal Is So Important (And Why Blocking There Could Be Very Harmful Globally)
"We are facing a difficult and complicated situation, we work on a rocky ground, the tides are very high, in addition to the enormous size of the ship and the number of containers that make it difficult," he said.
"We cannot set a specific date for the ship to float, it depends on the ship's response."
The ship was "very responsive" on Friday, leading to optimism that the work could be completed that night, he said.
However, the operation had to be stopped due to the tides.
Know the logic of using this excavator in the Suez Canal 3:20
About 9,000 tonnes of ballast water has been removed from the ship, Rabie said, and the dredging was carried out during low tides while 14 tugs worked during high tides.
Rescuers managed to temporarily restart the rudder and propellers on Friday night before a low tide halted their efforts, he explained.
In contrast to the pilot's comment, Rabie described another scenario that would require them to lighten the ship's load by removing the containers, a laborious and time-consuming process that they "hopefully" would not have to resort to.
About 321 ships are currently waiting to transit the canal without being able to divert from inside the canal at this point, he said.
Rabie said the reasons for the accident remain unclear.
"There are many factors or reasons, the fast winds and the sandstorm could have been a reason, but not the main reason, it could have been a technical error or human error," he said.
"There will be more investigations."
Rabie added that several countries such as the United States, China, Greece and the United Arab Emirates, have offered assistance to evacuate the ship.
The US Navy in the Middle East planned to send an assessment team of dredging experts to the Suez Canal on Saturday to advise local authorities, according to two US defense officials.
The blockade, on what is one of the busiest and most important waterways in the world, could have a major impact on already saturated global supply chains, and the disorder will increase with each passing day.
Try to move the ship
If the last attempt to refloat the ship fails, the ship, which measures 400 meters long and 59 meters wide, could be released "early next week", according to plans set by the head of a Dutch salvage company .
Peter Berdowski of Boskalis, a sister company to SMIT Salvage, told Dutch TV news 'Nieuwsuur' on Friday that further investigation has shown that the stern of the ship 'is not completely sunk in the clay'.
That would allow heavy tugs to take advantage of "lever power" by pulling the stern, he noted.
MORE: Suez Canal Jam: The Titanic Challenge of Freeing the Ship in Numbers
He said the hope was that his pulling power, combined with dredging work, a 16 to 20-inch high tide next week, and the relatively free stern lever power of the ship, would be sufficient "to free the ship at sometime early next week.
If that fails, the next step would be to remove up to 600 containers.
"In parallel, we are already mobilizing a crane," said Berdowski.
"This will also be delivered this weekend, allowing us to remove the containers from the front of the ship."
His optimistic forecast will be good news for many.
Shipping experts warned earlier this week that it could take days or even weeks to free the ship.
Concern for livestock
Meanwhile, billions of dollars in vital cargo and sensitive products are behind on the hundreds of ships whose path is blocked.
The maritime monitoring website Marine Traffic told CNN that 13 of the ships awaiting transit were transporting livestock, bound for different countries in Europe and Asia.
The European director of the NGO Animals International, Gabriel Paun, warned that thousands of animals transported on the boats, mostly Romanians, could be at risk of dying if the situation is not resolved in the coming days.
Currently, more ships carrying cattle are approaching the Suez Canal, according to Paun.
"We are sitting in front of a great tragedy if the canal is not released in the next 24 hours because there are boats that will run out of food and water [for the cattle] in the next two days," Paun said.
Some ships have food and water for six more days and "if they decide to return to Romania today, then they have a chance, but if the blockade lasts two to six more days, we will have a disaster," added Paun.
A ship carrying cattle, the Nabolsi, has sailed for 21 days after leaving Colombia on March 6, and is now waiting to pass through the blocked canal with animals on board, Marine Traffic spokesman Georgios Hatzimanolis said.
SCA's Rabie said there were three boats with cattle in the canal and that the Egyptian Ministry of Health had sent them animal feed and veterinary staff.
Every day that passes comes at a high cost for companies and countries whose trade has been held back by stagnation.
About 12% of the world's trade volume passes through the Suez Canal and typically handles around $ 10 billion a day in cargo.
More than 18,800 ships with a net tonnage of 1.17 billion tons passed through the canal during 2020. That's an average of 51.5 ships per day.
The dredgers work to free the container ship Ever Given stranded on Saturday.
Ship diversion
At least 10 ships, including tankers and LNG tankers and container ships, had deviated from the canal as of Friday, according to Marine Traffic and data intelligence firm Kpler.
"There are already several ships ... avoiding [the Mediterranean route to the canal] and now they are going south ... it is the right time to make that decision," said Lars Jensen, director of Sea Intelligence Consulting, a firm that provides consulting to the industry. of maritime transport.
The Indian government said on Friday that it advised its shipping lines to explore the option of diverting ships through the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, according to a statement from the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
He pointed out that said route change usually takes an additional 15 days.
This Suez Canal route is used by Indian exporters and importers for US $ 200 billion worth of trade with North America, South America and Europe, according to the statement.
The ministry added that it would identify and prioritize perishable cargo for its movement.
Even before Ever Given ran aground, global supply chains were being stretched to the limit, making it much more expensive to transport goods around the world.
A prolonged closure of the key route between Asia, Europe and North America only makes matters worse.
Discussing the issue of potential damage claims, Toshiaki Fujiwara, Senior Managing Director of Shoei Kisen KK, the ship's owner, said on Friday that "the company has not received any claims so far," adding that "it can take one to two or several years to get to those details. '
Evergreen Marine, the Taiwanese company that operates Ever Given, has claimed that Shoei Kisen KK is responsible for the accident, Fujiwara confirmed.
Magdy Samaan reported from Cairo and Mostafa Salem from Abu Dhabi, while Laura Smith-Spark wrote in London. CNN's Mick Krever, Sugam Pokharel, Tim Lister, and Pamela Boykoff contributed to this report.
Ship Suez Canal
