[ad_1]
Because blocking shipments takes weeks, if not months, it can lead to a ton of complaints from victims, from shipping lines to producers to oilers.
“The legal challenges are really huge,” said Alexis Cahalan, a partner at the Sydney-based firm Norton White, which specializes in transportation law. “Imagine what kind of cargo there is, whatever you want, starting with oil, grains, consumer goods, eg refrigerators, perishable goods, we will see the full scope of the demands only after a while.”
The gigantic container ship Ever Given was no longer off the coast on Monday, and traffic soon resumed on the canal, connecting the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. The canal was blocked last Tuesday when a ship collided with a sand embankment; It was the longest blockade of the canal since the Six Day War in 1967. It was closed for eight years. The incident recalled the fragility of the global business infrastructure and the dangers to supply chains already disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.
Ever Given, which has moved north from the southern part of the canal, where it has run aground in the vicinity of the Great Bitter Lake, is currently on a roadworthiness test. The inspection will determine whether the ship can continue the voyage as scheduled and what will happen to the cargo, according to a report by Taiwanese charter company Evergreen Line.
Egyptian authorities have been eagerly awaiting the resumption of river traffic, which carries around 12%. world raw materials and about 1 million barrels of oil per day.
Hundreds of ships got stuck in the resulting traffic jam. According to shipping service provider Inchcape Shipping Services, at 8:00 a.m. M. 421 ships waited their turn to cross the channel in local time. About 50 boats pass through the water per day, but that number is likely to increase significantly in the coming weeks.
“I think Egyptians will have a lot of trouble coordinating logistics, who will be able to navigate first and how to set up the queue,” John Wobensmith, chief executive of Genco Shipping & Trading Ltd., told Bloomberg Television on Tuesday.
Leth Agencies, one of the main Suez Canal crossing providers, reported that 37 ships stopped by the Great Bitter Lake had left the canal at 3.30am on Tuesday. local time, and 76 others had to sail the rest of the day.
South Korean airline HMM Co. said the HMM Gdansk, one of the world’s largest container ships with a capacity of 24,000 six-meter containers, was due to sail in the water on Tuesday after stalling in a traffic jam since last week.
It could take four days for traffic to finally return to normal, Osama Rabie, president of the Suez Canal administration, said at a news conference Monday night. Earlier, the canal’s management said it was more likely to take a full week.
According to Arthur Richier, an analyst at energy intelligence firm Vortexa, these estimates may be too optimistic. Freight rates on the sea lanes affected by the blockade are starting to rise due to lower availability of tankers, as some vessels remain trapped in the canal and others take a longer route around the southern Horn of Africa. This route can extend the ship’s journey from Asia to Europe by two weeks.
“It will take five or six days for the jam to clear completely,” Rustin Edwards, manager of fueling at Euronav NV, said during a conference call Tuesday. – We will start to see congestion at the delivery ports when ships on other routes and ships crossing the canal begin arriving at the same destinations. In the next two weeks, this will cause a lot of headaches for many container companies. “
The worldwide lockdown will reduce revenues for reinsurers, which have already been devastated by a pandemic, winter storms in the United States and floods in Australia, Fitch Ratings reports. According to them, the consequence will be a further rise in maritime reinsurance prices. Fitch estimates that the loss could amount to hundreds of millions of euros.
Ever Given and the owners of goods carried by other vessels, Ever Given and other shipowners could claim compensation from insurers for the delay. Cargo insurers, in turn, can file claims against Ever Given owners, who will continue to contact their insurers.
Evergreen claims that the Japanese company Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd., which owns the ship, is responsible for the losses. Shoei Kisen has taken some responsibility, but says charterers must negotiate with cargo owners.
In legal matters, Evergreen advises Ince Gordon Dadds LLP, according to informed sources, who have asked to remain anonymous because they do not have permission to speak to the media. Ince Gordon Dadds and London-based Evergreen declined to comment.
A Shoei Kisen spokesperson said the company had yet to receive any compensation claims. The company is still checking what it is responsible for. The helmet is insured with three Japanese companies.
Responsibility for the stranding of the giant ship will be determined after an investigation, said Rabie of the canal administration. He added that the canal authorities were not at fault and that the ship was the responsibility of the ship’s captain, not the helmsman.
[ad_2]
