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By Reuters 
2h ago
Cairo – The stranded container ship that blocked the Suez Canal for nearly a week floated again on Monday and is currently being insured, Inchcape Shipping Services said, raising hopes that the busy waterway will reopen soon.
The 400-meter (430-yard) long Ever Given was successfully re-floated at 4.30am local time (0230 GMT) and was being secured, Inchcape, a global marine services provider, said on Twitter.
Video posted on social media appeared to show that the stern of the ship had turned, opening up space in the channel. Other images, which could not be immediately verified by Reuters, included cheers and ship horns blaring in celebration.
VesselFinder vessel tracking service has changed the status of the vessel to ongoing on their website.
Commendable effort of the Suez Canal Authority 👏
Ever Given by Evergreen Marine Corporation is on its way 🚢
📸: @ibrahemfthelbab #SuezBLOCKED pic.twitter.com/FJ6eSMq5N9
– Nigel D’Souza (@Nigel__DSouza) March 29, 2021
The Ever Given stalled diagonally through a southern section of the canal in high winds early Tuesday morning, stopping maritime traffic on the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia.
At least 369 vessels were waiting to transit the canal, including dozens of container ships, bulk carriers, oil tankers and liquefied natural gas (LNG) or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) vessels, SCA President Osama Rabie said Sunday. to Extra News from Egypt.
The ship’s technical manager, Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM), did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Egypt’s Leth agencies tweeted that the ship had been partially refloated, pending official confirmation from the Suez Canal Authority (SCA).
The MV Ever Given was successfully re-floated at 04:30 lt 03/29/2021. She is insured right now. More information on next steps will be provided once they are known. #suezcanel #maritime pic.twitter.com/f3iuYYiRRi
– Inchcape Shipping (@Inchcape_SS) March 29, 2021
The SCA had previously said in a statement that towing operations had resumed to free the ship. Suez Canal salvage crews stepped up excavation and dredging on Sunday and hoped a high tide would help them dislodge it.
Crude oil prices fell after news that the ship had floated again, and Brent crude fell $ 1 a barrel to $ 63.67. Shares of Taiwan-listed Evergreen Marine Corp, the lessor of the ship, rose 3.3%.
Approximately 15% of the world’s maritime traffic transits the Suez Canal, which is a key source of foreign exchange earnings for Egypt. The current strike is costing the channel between $ 14 and $ 15 million a day.
Shipping rates for oil product tankers nearly doubled after the ship was stranded, and the lockdown has disrupted global supply chains, threatening costly delays for companies already facing shipping restrictions. Covid-19.
Some carriers had decided to divert their shipments around the Cape of Good Hope, adding about two weeks to travel and additional fuel costs.
A note from AP Moeller Maersk seen by Reuters said it had so far redirected 15 ships around the Cape after calculating that the trip would amount to the current delay in sailing to Suez and queuing.
The SCA has said it can speed up convoys through the canal once the Ever Given is released.
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