The ship stranded in the Suez Canal could be ‘freed’ within the day. The Ever Given container ship has been stuck in the strait since Tuesday and attempts to resolve the situation continue. According to the latest news, the operations, which involve nine tugs, began after the completion of the dredging operations under the bow of the Panamanian-flagged ship, as confirmed by the head of the Suez Canal Authority (Sca), Admiral Osama Rabae.
The outcome of the maneuvers depends on “various factors, in particular the direction of the wind and currents”, he added in a statement released in the last few hours in which the complexity of the operations is reiterated. Ever Given blocks more than 200 cargo ships that should have passed through the Suez Canal, according to data from the Lloyd’s List newspaper. Losses are estimated at 9.6 billion per day. Yukito Higaki, president of the Shoei Kisen Kaisha company, said yesterday that the teams on the spot hope to be able to ‘free’ the container ship in the same day, in the evening in Tokyo, as the Asahi Shimbun newspaper wrote. Higaki specified that “the ship is not taking on water” and “once it is cleared it will be able to sail”.
The United States, concerned about the impact of the blockade of the Suez Canal on the markets, offered assistance to Egypt “to reopen the canal”. Turkey also stepped forward, aiming to relaunch relations with Egypt after the strong tensions following the dismissal in 2013 of Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, an expression of the Muslim Brotherhood.