Page 5 - Al-Rashed Newsletter March 2021

POTPOURRI
'EVER GIVEN' A THOUGHT ON THE IMPACT?

The 2018-built 20,388 teu Ever Given, which was en route from Shenzhen to Rotterdam, blocking the
canal in both directions after it got stuck near the Red Sea entrance of the canal on 23rd Mar 2021
morning. The 400-metre-long (1,300 ft) vessel had been buffeted by a sandstorm and strong winds of up
to 74 kilometres per hour (40 knots; 46 miles per hour), knocking it off course, though authorities stated
this was "not the main reason" for the grounding, and that "there may have been technical or human
errors".

ANALYSIS AND POTENTIAL IMPACT OF THE SUEZ CANAL BLOCKADE ON GLOBAL TRADE:
About 12% of global trade passes through the Suez canal, carrying well over $1 trillion worth of goods
a year. About 50 ships a day, carrying a total of $3bn to $9bn worth of cargo.
20000+ TEUS on Ever GIven and 367 vessels (including 16+ tankers) are stuck
About 1.9 million barrels of oil a day go through the canal, according to Lloyd’s (7% of all seaborne oil)
Suez Canal generates $5.6 B in revenue annually
Europe will see the snowballing effect of vessel delays and freight rises
Lloyd’s List calculates blockage is holding up an estimated $9.6bn of trade along the waterway each
day. That equates to $400m and 3.3 million tonnes of cargo an hour, or $6.7m a minute.
Container scarcity expected to increase containers are stuck,
Consumers won't feel the pinch right away
Freight rate increase if container scarcity and vessel hold-up ensues.
Piracy scares for the vessels going around the Cape of Good Hope.
Daily vessel throughput through Suez- 106- at full capacity, it will take 3.5 days to clear the current
backlog.

HOW IT WAS FREED:
Stern was freed and rotated 20 degrees in the morning of 29th Mar. Dutch specialist team oversaw the
operations with 13 tugs. Dredgers were brought in and dug 30,000 cubic metres of mud and sand from
beneath the ends of the ship. Over the weekend, it was feared that some of the ship's cargo of some
18,000 containers would have to be removed in order to lighten the load. But high tides helped the tugs
and dredgers in their work and early on Monday, the stern (rear of the ship) was freed ship swung across
the canal, to shouts of celebration. Hours later, the bow (front) too came unstuck, and the Ever Given was
able to move out. The vessel was towed to the Great Bitter Lake, which sits between two sections of the
canal to the north of the salvage site, where it will undergo safety checks.

Source: Wikipedia, Guardian, The Hindu ,BBC, CNN