Teams of engineers on Monday managed to partially refloat a massive container ship that's been stuck in the Suez Canal for a week, per the Wall Street Journal.
The latest: An official with waterway operator the Suez Canal Authority told Bloomberg the position of Ever Given had moved roughly 80%, with maneuvers continuing in the morning "around high tide."
BREAKING : EVER GIVEN ship has been UNSTUCK & Moving into #Suez Canal after 6 Days!!
— Joyce Karam (@Joyce_Karam) March 29, 2021
Egyptian crew managed to float it moments ago. It’s 5:42 am there: pic.twitter.com/GoMlYjQerL
Why it matters: With the Panama-registered vessel, operated by Evergreen and owned by Shoei Kisen Kaisha, partially afloat, it raises hopes that one of the world's busiest trade routes could soon reopen.
Yes, but: "While the ship is floating again, it wasn't immediately clear how soon the waterway would be open to traffic, or how long it will take to clear the logjam of more than 450 ships stuck, waiting and en route to the Suez that have identified it as their next destination," Bloomberg notes.
- “The ship is like a giant whale that we have to slide off the beach, back in the water,” Peter Berdowski, CEO of dredging company Royal Boskalis Westminster, told Dutch television on Monday. “We shouldn’t start cheering just yet."
- Maersk, the largest shipping container company in the world, said Monday the six-day blockage has triggered a series of disruptions to global trade that could "take weeks, possibly months, to unravel."
What to watch: "Today we will start our plan for all the ships to cross the canal, and it could take around one week to get all ships out of the Suez canal corridor," said canal authority chair Mohab Mamish, per Bloomberg.
The MV Ever Given was successfully re-floated at 04:30 lt 29/03/2021. She is being secured at the moment. More information about next steps will follow once they are known. #suezcanel #maritime pic.twitter.com/f3iuYYiRRi
— Inchcape Shipping (@Inchcape_SS) March 29, 2021
Go deeper: Mayday at the Suez Canal
Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout, and to correct that Shoei Kisen Kaisha owns the vessel, not Evergreen.
