Wallenius Wilhelmsen ASA

03/29/2021 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 03/29/2021 09:33

Information regarding possible delays related to the Suez Canal blockage

Information regarding possible delays related to the Suez Canal blockage

While we are delighted to see that MV Ever Given has been successfully refloated and the Suez Canal unblocked, traffic has yet to resume and restoring normal transit may still take some time.

29 March 2021

The blockage has already triggered disruptions and backlogs in global shipping that could take many weeks to resolve. For Wallenius Wilhelmsen we expect about two-week delays in our services:

  • Most vessels expected to start export voyage from Europe on and around week 14 will be in position at the earliest week 16.
  • Most vessels expected to start export voyage from Asia on and around week 16 will be in position at the earliest week 18.
  • While we will work hard for resumption our usual reliable service, our global schedules and services (EX USA, SAM, SEA and Oceania) will be disrupted for the coming 6 to 8 weeks.

In our global and interconnected economy, events in one corner of the world may be felt globally. Even when the canal is reopened, the knock-on effects on global capacity, equipment and supply chains are expected to be felt for some time.

This is also likely to cause a sharp rise in storage needs - due to a lack of vessels collecting cargo from quays - and we would therefore encourage terminal partners and customers to engage with us and other logistics providers to pace their deliveries into the export hubs to prevent congestion.

Customer supply chains are very important to us, and while these delays are most regrettable, please note that we are doing our utmost to mitigate the impact as best as we can.

Customers are encouraged to contact their regular customer care team should they have any further questions.