A tugboat pulls an ship along Egypt s Suez Canal, which has recorded all-time revenue record for the past fiscal year. AFP
The tally included 56 ships that entered the canal from the south with a net tonnage of 3.4 million tons, while 51 ships crossed from the north in the new navigational stream with a total net tonnage of 2.9 million tons, Rabie added.
The giant container ship EVER GIFTED, classified as one of the largest container ships in the world with a total tonnage of 223,000 tons, crossed the canal from Greece to Malaysia, while the COSCO SHIPPING UNIVERSE container ship flying the Hong Kong flag came at the head of the southern convoy, with a total tonnage of 232,000 tons, on its journey from Singapore to Greece.
Rabie attributed the increase in daily transit rates to the New Suez Canal project which has succeeded in increasing the canal’s capacity and raising the canal’s readiness to receive new and future generations of big ships with large drafts.
The SCA published in late January an infograph comparing the navigation statistics in the Suez Canal between 2008-2014 and 2016-2022 -- before and after the inauguration of the New Suez Canal project that established a parallel path to part of the original one.
Total revenues recorded $41.7 billion in the seven years after the operation of the new canal, up from $35.4 billion between 2008 and 2014, recording an increase of 17.8 percent, the SCA added in January.
In January 2023, the canal registered the highest monthly revenue in its history, reaching $802 million, surpassing the record achieved in August 2022 by $56.4 million.
Rabie stressed on Monday that these unprecedented rates are the result of developments in the navigational course. He added the southern sector of the canal was developed to increase navigational safety by 28 percent and the capacity of the canal by about six ships.
In February 2022, Rabie said work was underway to extend the two-way segment of the Suez Canal by 10 kilometres as part of the country’s plan to constantly improve the international waterway.
The two-way traffic segment will be extended from the current 72 to 82 kilometres, Rabie said in the first news conference on the process, which began in June 2021.
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