What benefits will the expansion of the Suez Canal provide?

The new canal allows ships to sail in both directions at the same time. This decreases transit time from 18 to 11 hours for most ships. The expansion is expected to double the capacity of the Suez Canal from 49 to 97 ships a day.

Will Suez Canal be expanded?

SCA’s plan to extend the Suez Canal has been approved by the Egyptian Government. With the extension project, the double-lane stretch of the canal will extend to 82km, providing more passage for vessels to move through the canal.

Can Egypt widen Suez Canal?

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has approved a project to widen and deepen the southern stretch of the Suez Canal, where a giant vessel blocked the strategic maritime artery for nearly a week in March.

Was the Suez Canal widened?

In an effort to avoid a repeat of the event, in mid-May, the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) announced it had started dredging work to widen and deepen the southern part of the canal where the Ever Given was jammed.

Why was the Suez Canal blocked on 23 March?

On the morning of 23 March 2021, the Suez Canal was blocked after the grounding of Ever Given, a 20,000 TEU container ship.

How many ships were queuing to pass through the Suez Canal?

On 28 March, at least 369 ships were queuing to pass through the canal. This prevented an estimated US$9.6 billion worth of trade.

When will shipping resume in the Suez Canal?

The canal was checked for damage, and after being found to be sound, the SCA allowed shipping to resume from 19:00 EGY (17:00 UTC) on 29 March. The vessel was subsequently impounded by the Egyptian government on 13 April 2021 for refusing to pay compensations demanded by the government, a claim deemed to be unjustified by the ship’s insurers.

Will megaships be able to be serviced at the Suez Canal?

“If those terminals that can [accommodate megaships], aren’t able to service them for whatever reason – local power cuts or military action – then these ships can’t be serviced at all.” The Suez canal has been in the process of expansion to allow for larger ships and two-way traffic at its northern end.