The Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships at 400-metres, which is carrying approximately 18,000 containers, became wedged sideways in the Suez Canal amid high winds on March 23.
The huge container ship ran aground as it sailed through the Suez Canal on its way from China to Rotterdam.
The Ever Given was refloated at 15:05 local time (13:05 GMT) on Monday, "thereby making free passage through the Suez Canal possible again". It is not clear yet when full traffic in the Suez Canal will resume.
The wind speed at the time the ship got stuck was recorded at 40 knots. The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) told reporters that an investigation would be needed to determine whether technical or human errors occurred.
Lloyd’s list estimates 400 ships are stuck in a tailback waiting to transit the Suez Canal.
Data from Lloyd's List showed the stranded ship was holding up an estimated $9bn of trade each day. Ships have been rerouted to avoid the Suez Canal, adding around eight days to their total journeys.
Industry sources warn that the ship’s owner and insurers face large compensation claims for the delays and extra costs incurred by other companies.
The backlog from the ship's delay is likely to lead to rising shipping rates in the coming months.
If you are looking at how to minimise costs in your supply chains, please do feel free to contact us at Tudor International Freight, on 0333 1234 747 or email sales@tudorfreight.com.
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Established in Horsforth, Leeds, back in 1991, we are a logistics company who are experts in road, air and sea freight. We transport goods to most major cities, towns and suburbs across all 6 continents. We go over and above to ensure that our client’s products, goods and cargo are transported around the world safely and successfully. We are a family business, who are still based in Horsforth, Leeds, West Yorkshire.