30% Of Container Fleet To Struggle As Red Sea Tensions Escalate

More container ships could be blocked if tensions escalate in the Red Sea. According to Linerlytica's latest report on December 5, increased attacks on Red Sea vessels could cause 30% of the container fleet to be in trouble and need to be rerouted.

On December 3, the Number 9, a container ship owned by British company Castle Harbour and operated by OOCL, was hit by a rocket fired by a Houthi drone during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Linerlytica noted that the attack on the container ship Number 9 "amplifies the threat to all ships passing through the Red Sea, even those with no connection to Israel."

Haifa-based shipping company ZIM Line has rerouted its vessels from the Suez Canal to a longer route around the Cape of Good Hope, while Denmark's Maersk Line has rerouted two vessels chartered from Israel following the Nov. 25 attack on the CMA CGM Symi. Maersk Line has also changed the routes of two vessels chartered from Israel after the attack on the CMA CGM Symi on November 25th.

According to Linerlytica's data, of the 653 container ships currently passing through the Suez Canal (with a total capacity of 8.25 million TEUs), only 8 are operated by Israeli carriers and 29 are owned by Israeli interests.

Linerlytica said, "The impact of ship diversions is currently minimal, but any escalation of the threat to ship security in the Suez Canal will have a much greater impact as 30% of total container ship capacity will be affected."

Currently, the impact of Panama Canal transit restrictions and Suez Canal rerouting is minor.

Congestion in the Panama Canal peaked in the week ending Dec. 3 with 31 ships in queue, but has eased as more ships have moved to the Suez Canal and the Cape of Good Hope.

Linerlytica said, "While these moves will help absorb some of the excess vessels, the impact is limited at this stage as it affects less than 2% of the entire fleet."