Maersk confirms ships will stop using Suez Canal

AP MOLLER-Maersk has confirmed that some of its ships will stop using the Suez Canal and instead reroute round the Cape of Good Hope, in light of the current piracy crisis in Somalia.

The move — predicted in today’s edition of Lloyd’s List — could add to the pressure for other operators to follow suit. Maersk subsidiary Svitzer and leading chemtanker player Odfjell have already adopted a similar policy, and Frontline, Wallenius, BW Gas and Euronav have all said that they are mulling the proposals.

The implications for the shipping industry will be considerable, and will effect both transit times and tonne-mile demand. The development could also prove bad news for Egypt, which is heavily dependent on Suez Canal dues as a source of foreign exchange.

A statement published by Maersk in the last hour said: “Vessels without adequate speed or freeboard will for the time being avoid the Gulf of Aden and seek alternative routing south of the Cape of Good Hope and east of Madagascar. However, based upon availability of escorts, these vessels may join naval convoy transit in the Gulf of Aden.

“The policy change will primarily impact our tanker vessels. Only three container vessels will be affected and we expect to further limit the impact by redeployment.

"In general and for vessels entering the Gulf of Aden, we have safety and security procedures in place. We continue to monitor the situation and regularly update our procedures and policies.”

Maersk director Søren Skou added: “We believe that piracy in the Gulf of Aden is a threat to important international trade lanes and therefore an international security issue. It must be addressed by relevant authorities and the international community. It is not a problem that AP Moller-Maersk or the shipping industry can solve alone.”