Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) Osama Rabie announced Thursday, that over 80 percent of the dredging work to expand and deepen the southern sector of the Suez Canal has been accomplished.
Work commenced in February to develop the southern part of the Suez Canal from the canal’s 132-kilometre mark to the 162-kilometre mark, extending from the Bitter Lakes to the exit of the canal.
To allow for two-way traffic in the southern section of the canal, a second lane at the canal is being extended at the 122-kilometre mark to the 132-kilometre mark.
Expansion of the international trade route followed the successful refloating of the 400-metre-long Ever Given container ship in March 2021 that ran aground in the southern segment and disrupted global trading for weeks.
in the first quarter of 2023, the Suez Canal experienced a 20% increase in the number of ships that passed through the canal compared to the same period last year, a statement by the Suez Canal revealed.
The canal’s revenues also shot to $2.3 billion, an increase of about 35% compared to 2022 revenues. The canal also achieved the highest daily transit rate in its history, on March 13, with 107 ships, with a tonnage of 6.3 million tons.