Dredging work to extend a second lane of the Suez Canal has begun, with a widened and deepened southern section of the vital waterway due to open to giant container ships by 2023.
The Suez Canal Authority said on Saturday that work was under way, only a week after announcing the plan to extend the waterway near the spot where the giant container ship Ever Given became stuck for six days in March.
The plan includes widening the canal's southernmost stretch by about 40 metres to the east, on the side of the Sinai Peninsula. That segment would also be deepened to 72 feet, from the current 66 feet in depth in a stretch of canal 30 kilometres long.
The plan also includes a 10km extension of a second lane of the waterway that opened in 2015. That would extend the double-lane stretch of the canal to 82km, allowing more vessels to pass through the canal.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi gave directions "to immediately start implementing the proposed development plan and put in place a timetable for completion as soon as possible", the authority said on Saturday.
The grounding of the 440-metre Ever Given in a southern section of the canal from March 23 to March 29 delayed the passage of hundreds of vessels through the waterway, disrupting global trade.
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This satellite imagery released by Maxar Technologies shows a close up overview of the MV Ever Given container ship and tugboats in the Suez Canal. AFP / Maxar Technologies -
The guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey (CG 61), left, and the guided-missile destroyer USS Thomas Hudner (DDG 116) sail behind the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) during a Suez Canal transit, in this picture taken April 2, 2021 and released by U.S. Navy. Reuters -
In this photo released by Suez Canal Authority, the Ever Given, a Panama-flagged cargo ship, is pulled by one of the Suez Canal tugboats, in the Suez Canal, Egypt. AP Photo -
A spectator waves as the Ever Given container ship moves along the Suez Canal towards Ismailia after being freed from the canal bank in Suez, Egypt. Bloomberg -
A man waves at the Panama-flagged MV 'Ever Given' container ship as it is tugged in Egypt's Suez Canal after it was fully dislodged from the banks, near Suez city. AFP -
A view shows Ever Given container ship in Suez Canal in this Maxar Technologies satellite image. Satellite image ©2021 Maxar Technologies/Handout via Reuters -
A handout photograph made available by the Suez Canal Authority shows the Ever Given container ship after it was refloated in the Suez Canal, Egypt. EPA -
A handout photograph made available by the Suez Canal Authority shows the Ever Given container ship after it was refloated in the Suez Canal, Egypt. The head of the Suez Canal Authority announced on 29 March that the large container ship, which ran aground in the Suez Canal on 23 March, is now free floating after responding to the pulling maneuvers. EPA -
People watch Ever Given, a Panama-flagged cargo ship, that has been stuck sideways and blocked traffic in Egypt's Suez Canal, move past after it was set free by salvage teams. AP Photo -
People watch as the container ship 'Ever Given' is refloated, unblocking the Suez Canal in Suez, Egypt. This morning the container ship came partly unstuck from the shoreline, where it ran aground in the canal last Tuesday, and later resumed its course shortly after 3pm local time. Getty Images -
A view of the Panama-flagged MV 'Ever Given' (operated by Taiwan-based Evergreen Marine) container ship, a 400-metre- (1,300-foot-)long and 59-metre wide vessel, as it remains lodged sideways impeding traffic across Egypt's Suez Canal waterway. AFP -
Ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships, is seen after it was fully floated in Suez Canal, Egypt. Suez Canal Authority/Handout via Reuters -
The container ship 'Ever Given' is refloated, unblocking the Suez Canal in Suez, Egypt. This morning the container ship came partly unstuck from the shoreline, where it ran aground in the canal last Tuesday, and later resumed its course shortly after 3pm local time. Getty Images -
The container ship 'Ever Given' is moving in the Suez Canal, Egypt. The Suez Canal Authority on 29 March said that traffic is to resume after the large container ship 'Ever Given' was refloated. EPA
About 10 per cent of world trade flows through the canal, a pivotal source of foreign currency to Egypt. More than 19,000 vessels passed through the canal last year, according to official figures.
The Ever Given, still loaded with thousands of containers, is being held in the Great Bitter Lake between two stretches of the canal, amid a dispute over a compensation claim brought by the canal authority against the ship's Japanese owner Shoei Kisen.
