Advertisement
Egypt impounds Ever Given until owners pay compensation for blocking Suez Canal
- The massive vessel was stuck in the canal for six days, holding up cargo worth billions of dollars
- Egyptian authorities are seeking US$900 million in compensation
Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
1
The megaship which blocked Egypt’s Suez Canal and crippled world trade for nearly a week has been “seized” on court orders until the vessel’s owners pay US$900 million, canal authorities said on Tuesday.
Advertisement
The 200,000-tonne MV Ever Given got diagonally stuck in the narrow but crucial global trade artery in a sandstorm on March 23, triggering a mammoth six-day effort by Egyptian personnel and international salvage specialists to dislodge it.
Maritime data company Lloyd’s List said the blockage by the vessel, longer than four football fields, held up an estimated US$9.6 billion worth of cargo between Asia and Europe each day it was stuck.
Egypt also lost between US$12 and US$15 million in revenues for each day the waterway was closed, according to the canal authority.
The MV “Ever Given was seized due to its failure to pay US$900 million” compensation, Suez Canal Authority chief Osama Rabie was quoted as saying by Al-Ahram, a state-run newspaper.
Advertisement
Advertisement