Suez Canal: Stranded ship Ever Given finally back on the move
A large container ship that grounded in the Suez Canal and blocked the waterway for almost a week is finally back on the move.
The 400-metre Ever Given, which became wedged in the canal on Tuesday and has wreaked havoc for global shipping, was refloated this morning. In a statement the Suez Canal Authority said traffic would be able to resume.
A shipping tracker showed the boat in the middle of the canal, while footage shared on social media showed it moving slowly north.
It comes hours after Egyptian authorities announced the ship had been refloated following gargantuan efforts to dislodge it from the bank of the canal.
The Suez Canal Autority said the ship had been “successfully refloated” following “successful push and tow manoeuvres which led to the restoration of 80 per cent of the vessel’s direction”.
The development means traffic will finally be able to continue in the waterway, relieving a backlog of hundreds of ships.
Around 12 per cent of all shipping passes through the canal so the blockage has wreaked havoc on global supply chains. Shipping rates for oil tankers have nearly doubled since the ship became stranded last week.
Brent oil fell 63 cents, or one per cent, to $63.94 a barrel on the news this afternoon. US crude was down 63 cents, or one per cent, at $60.34 a barrel.
“Oil’s volatile trading is set to continue, and if the Suez Canal situation is correct, oils recovery pre-Opec+ may well be over,” Jeffrey Halley, Oanda’s senior market analyst said. “Given the volatility last week, Brent looks set to move to the lower end of its $60.00 to $65.00 a barrel range.”