The head of the Suez Canal Authority, Osama Rabei, said yesterday, Saturday, that the efforts made to remove the container ship "Ever Given", which has been stuck in the canal for days, allowed the return of the reflux and rudder movement of the ship, but it is still not clear when it will be resurfaced, while sources indicated In the body until the bow of the ship moved slightly.

Rabie added that he hopes that it will not be necessary to take out some of the containers - the number of which are 18,300 containers - to reduce its cargo, but the strength of the wind makes it more difficult to re-float.

The head of the Suez Canal Authority indicated that when dealing with a ship of this size, it is difficult to predict the outcome of dredging or locomotives dealing with it.

He pointed out that 321 ships are waiting to enter or continue their voyages through the canal, and a source in the shipping industry said that among them are dozens of container ships, cargo carriers, and liquefied natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas.

Regarding the causes of the ship’s stranding, the head of the Suez Canal Authority ruled out that wind speed is the main reason for its delinquency, and it is likely that there was a technical or human error that caused the accident, indicating that this would appear in the investigations.

Continuous efforts

Two sources in the authority said that dredging around the ship, pushing and pulling it with tugboats made limited progress in moving it on Saturday, and that the bow of the ship moved slightly.

For its part, other sources in the authority indicated that more efforts are scheduled to be made on Sunday morning, but those sources said that it would be necessary to remove more sand surrounding the ship in order to re-float it.

Dredgers lifted about 20 thousand tons of sand from around the bow of the ship, and a Dutch company working to float the ship said it was possible to liberate the ship within the next few days.

Peter Berdowski, CEO of Boskalis - the parent company of the Dutch company called Salvage, which was brought in last week to boost the efforts of the Suez Canal Authority to float the ship - said that heavy locomotives with a total capacity of 400 tons will arrive this week.

He added that the front was actually stuck in the sand layer, but the stern was not completely bursting into that layer, which he considered a positive thing that could be used as a tool to liberate the ship.

According to Berdowski, a ground crane will arrive within days, which can lighten the "Evergiven" load, by landing containers, but experts have warned that such a process could be complicated and lengthy.

Damage warning

Fourteen locomotives have so far participated in the effort to float the "Evergiven", although Puskalis and the so-called Salvage have warned that applying excessive force to the diameter of the ship could cause damage.

For its part, container shipping group "CMAJM" said yesterday that it decided to divert some ships to orbit around the Cape of Good Hope due to the suspension of traffic in the Suez Canal.

The France-based company said in an online update that two ships would initially be diverted, and added that it was also studying sea routes, railways or alternative air routes for goods that had not yet been loaded.