Suez Canal chief says southern stretch to be deepened and expanded

The announcement comes after container ship Ever Given blocked the canal for days

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

The southern stretch of the Suez Canal is set to be widened and deepened after one of the world’s largest container vessels became lodged across the channel stopping all global trade through the vital waterway earlier this year.

Suez Canal chairman Osama Rabie announced the plans on Tuesday in a televised event with President Abdel Fattah El Sisi.

By 2023, the authority plans to have widened the 30-kilometre stretch of waterway between the city of Suez and the Bitter Lakes area by 40 meters eastwards. The same section will also be dragged from 20 meters deep to 22.

A second canal lane further north that was inaugurated by President El Sisi in 2015 to allow two-directional traffic will be extended by 10km to a total length of 82km, allowing more ships to pass, Mr Rabie said.

The earlier expansion and the latest announcements will increase the canal's capacity from 49 vessels per day in 2014 to 97 vessels per day by 2023. It will mean an increase in canal revenue from $5.3 billion in 2014 to $13.2bn by 2023.

Mr El Sisi, speaking at the same event, said he does not want to mobilise “huge” public funding for the project as the government did when expanding the canal years earlier.

He said “we’re not in a hurry” for the project to be completed.

The plan comes after the container vessel Ever Given lost control and became wedged across the waterway in March. It took a massive effort involving crews of tug boats and dredgers to clear the mud around the ship and refloat the massive 400-metre vessel.

The authority will also strengthen its rescue operations by purchasing large tug capacity vessels that are equipped to deal with such giant container ships.

Ten per cent of global trade traffic passes through the canal, which is also an important source of Egyptian national income.

By the time the Ever Given was freed on March 29, there were 422 ships waiting at the northern and southern entrances of the canal, Mr Rabie said. The waiting ships and their cargos were cleared in four days.

Egyptian authorities impounded the hulking Ever Given and are demanding hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation.

An Egyptian court last week rejected an appeal by the owner of Ever Given over the court-ordered seizure. The Suez Canal Authority said the vessel would not be allowed to leave the country until an agreement was reached with the ship's Japanese owner, Shoei Kisen Kaisha.

The Suez Canal Authority reduced its compensation claim, which covers losses due to the blockage and costs for dislodging the ship, from $916 million to $600m over the weekend.

However, UK Club, an insurer of the Ever Given, said on Monday the claim was still "exceptionally large".

Other announced projects on Tuesday include a museum highlighting the history of the Suez Canal and an 80,000 square-metre stadium with a capacity of 22,000 spectators.