Suez Canal traffic ‘regular’ after bulk carrier suffers engine failure in waterway

Work is underway to tow the bulk carrier Glory after it suffered an engine failure in the Suez Canal Monday morning, the canal authority said.

“The authority’s marine rescue team dealt professionally with a sudden technical failure of the machines of the bulk vessel GLORY at kilometer 38 passing within the northern convoy on its journey coming from Turkey and heading to China,” the Suez Canal Authority said on Twitter, according to a translation.

“Work is now underway to tow the idle ship,” it added. The Suez Canal Authority said on Facebook that the ship had suffered an engine failure, according to a translation.

Shipping agency Leth said that the vessel had been refloated after running aground.

“21 vessels going southbound will commence/resume their transits. Only minor delays expected,” Leth tweeted.

The vessel had loaded 65,970 metric tons of corn from Ukrainian port Chornomorsk on Dec. 25 and was bound for China, according to the Istanbul-based Black Sea Grain Initiative Joint Coordination Center. The JCC facilitates humanitarian maritime exports of grain, other foodstuffs and fertilizers from Ukraine.

The Suez Canal is one of the world’s most important waterways, with its 120 miles hosting 30% of global shipping container traffic and 12% of all global trade worth about $1 trillion annually.

In March 2021, a massive 220,000-ton tanker called Ever Given got stuck across the Suez Canal for six days, causing its longest-ever closure due to a ship and holding up some $60 billion of trade.