Hamburg to Singapore via the Cape of Good Hope on the southern tip of Africa: 11,864 nautical miles
Hamburg to Singapore via the Suez Canal: 8,377 nautical miles
(A statute mile is 5,280 feet in length; a nautical mile is 6,076.11549... feet in length.)
That is a difference of 3,487 nautical miles. For the average ship steaming at 18 knots (18 nautical miles per hour), that's 193.72 hours or just over 8 days. So the Suez Canal literally saves over an entire week off of the transit from Europe to Asia.
That means money.
Less money that has to be spent on fuel to get the ship there, food for the crew for those 8 days not spend at sea, and less cost to shippers to send those good.
It also means more goods transported in a year, so manufacturers make more, shippers make more, and the consumer gets more and gets it faster.
Without the Suez Canal, everything increases in price. Not to mention the Cape of Good Hope is a notoriously dangerous shipping route with frequent and bad storms. That means not only does it take longer, but it's more dangerous.
A shorter route, a faster route, a less dangerous route, and a less expensive route. What's not to like?
(You can use this same analogy for the Panama Canal and transits around Cape Horn and South America
Image Courtesy: Pinterest
On 23 March, 2021, a 400 metre long container ship named Ever Given ran aground due to high winds and dust storm. It covered the entire width of the canal and b locked the passage. Nearly 150 container ship are waiting to cross the canal.
Satellite Image of the Ever Given ship blocking the Suez canal. Image Courtesy: Al Jazeera.
In spite of many efforts, the ship was could not be dredged till today. It may take another week to clear the canal passage. this is latest position of the blockage of canal.
The consequences of this blockage is that it may reduce the oil supply and boost the oil prices again.
Russia has said that in view of this crisis it is more important to develop N orth Sea route which would be an alternative to Suez canal route.
Why is it taking so long to dislodge the containership blocking the Suez Canal
Accidents happen, but how one deals with the accident is not “an act of God” but entirely of one’s own doing. The appalling lack of efficiency in salvage is on full display here.
This is not how it’s done. This is betting all on hope alone. This kind of ships have 80 feet under the water. Digging 2 feet at the water line does nothing.
Egypt loses $15 million a day when the Canal is blocked. With that kind of money, can they at least send a couple of divers to go down and take some pictures? Can they at least figure out just how stuck is the ship? Can they find a way to unload some cargos and let buoyancy do some work? Can they recruit someone who actually knows math and physics? Basically, start working on a fail-proof plan, instead of betting it all on wishful thinking?
Thank-you
Copyright by QRA
