Efforts to dislodge the huge container ship stuck in the Suez Canal intensified Saturday as the backlog of ships at either end of the crucial waterway grew, heightening concerns over the impact of the blockage on global supply chains.

The Ever Given, a container ship almost as long as the Empire State Building is tall, ran aground in the Egyptian canal on Tuesday after being caught in 40-knot winds and a sandstorm.

Since then, dredgers have been working to remove vast quantities of sand and mud from around the port side of the 224,000-ton vessel's bow.Even before the Ever Given ran aground, global supply chains were being stretched to the limits, making it much more expensive to move goods around the world.

A prolonged closure of the key route between Asia, Europe and North America would only make matters worse.

Discussing the issue of potential damages claims, Toshiaki Fujiwara, senior managing director of Shoei Kisen KK, the ship's owner, said Friday that "the company has not received any claims at this point," adding that "it may take one [to] two or several years to come up with those details."

Evergreen Marine, the Taiwanese company which operates the Ever Given, has claimed that Shoei Kisen KK bears responsibility for the accident, Fujiwara confirmed.

Last edited by Spunky (3/27/2021 7:09 pm)