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Unprecedented congestion on the Panama Canal may finally lead to delays at Egypt’s Suez Canal, probably affecting cargoes of liquefied pure fuel, in line with a high official at Greek transport large Angelicoussis Group.
“Suez will need to take a lot more vessels” on account of the disaster in Panama, Sveinung Støhle, the corporate’s deputy chief govt, stated at a convention in Athens. “That means that the waiting time on both ends likely will increase.”
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A scarcity of rainfall has dried up a key lake on the Panama Canal, hobbling shipments by way of one of many world’s most necessary waterways. The ensuing delays have already upended international commerce, forcing some ships to take the lengthy journey round South America.
The Suez Canal, an alternate route for vessels travelling between the USA and Asia, has dealt with congestion points “very well over the years,” making it “less of an issue, but obviously it’s something you need to be aware of,” Støhle stated. Suez has a bigger capability than the Panama waterway, enabling it to deal with extra ships per day.
Angelicoussis Group, which dates again to 1947, serves the oil, fuel and dry cargo markets. With a fleet that has 29.5 million deadweight tons of transportation capability, it’s Greece’s largest transport firm, in line with information from Clarkson Analysis Providers Ltd., a unit of the world’s largest shipbroker.
LNG threat
Due to the back-up on the Panama Canal, solely firms which have pre-booked slots will be capable of use the waterway, in line with Støhle. Solely about 4 or 5 LNG vessels at the moment are transiting the canal every month, in contrast with one a day earlier than the disaster, he stated.
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Extended congestion may additionally result in a tighter ship market because the world will increase its starvation for the gasoline. Sometimes two vessels are wanted to haul 1,000,000 tons of LNG from the U.S. to China, in line with Støhle.
“If you can’t go via the Panama Canal, you have to add one more ship for the same volume,” he stated. “Where do you get the ships from? That’s is going to be a challenge.”
Europe specifically has turn out to be more and more reliant on LNG because it replaces pipeline fuel from Russia, the area’s former high provider. This could proceed for the one other three or 4 years, although the true long-term demand for the gasoline will likely be in Asia, requiring extra ships to journey longer distances, in line with Maria Angelicoussis, the agency’s chief govt.
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Whereas extra ships are being constructed, a big portion of older steam vessels is being phased out. “The market will be in balance if not tight,” she stated on the similar convention.
— with help from Alaric Nightingale.
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