Chinese Bulker Grounds in Suez Canal Stopping Traffic for Four Hours
A Chinese bulker briefly disrupted traffic for the southbound convoy of the Suez Canal on April 2 after the vessel experienced a reported “technical failure.” While the incident only lasted four hours, it came just past the fifth anniversary of the Ever Given grounding, which blocked the canal for six days, and as analysts have emphasized the importance of the Suez Canal, with the Strait of Hormuz mostly closed.
The bulker Xin Tai Yuan (75,413 dwt) was traveling in the north convoy that had left Port Said. The vessel, built in 2001, is 225 meters (738 feet) in length and registered in Panama. Its AIS shows it is coming from Ust-Luga, Russia, and the Suez Canal Authority says it is bound for Singapore.
At midday, the ship reported a technical failure and grounded north of Great Bitter Lake in the Suez Canal. It was near the 87 KM marker in the canal. The authority is saying that the vessel experienced a problem with its rudder during the transit.
Four tugs were used to get the bulker back in the channel (SCA)
Four of the SCA’s tugs were dispatched for the recovery operation. Included, the highlight was the canal’s newest tug, the Azm 2, which has a bollard pull of 90 tons. The four tugs worked and were able to pull the bulker free and reposition it back into the channel. They then accompanied the vessel to the anchorage in Great Bitter Lake, where the plan called for a technical inspection and survey of the hull. If the vessel was not damaged, it was to take up a position at the end of the convoy.
The southbound convoy was stopped for four hours during the grounding and recovery operation.
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The disruption came on a day when a total of 50 vessels, northbound and southbound, were making the transit. The SCA said it was a net tonnage of 2.2 million tons.
Volume in the canal has remained fairly steady during March, according to the reports. The SCA said on March 3 that a total of 56 vessels with a total net tonnage of 2.6 million tons had made the passage. Over the prior three days, it reported that 100 ships had made the transit, representing a total net tonnage of 3.8 million tons. Traffic dropped on March 25 to a total of 39 ships with a total net tonnage of 1.6 million tons.