Several shipping companies, including Danish shipping giant Maersk, are currently avoiding sailing through the strait near Yemen because Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have repeatedly attacked ships in the Bab Al-Mandab strait in recent weeks.
In response to these attacks, a few days before Christmas, the United States (U.S.) initiated the international military coalition OPG (Operation Prosperity Guardian), which should ensure shipping in the Red Sea. On Saturday, December 30th, 2023, the U.S. Navy sank several Houthi rebel vessels that attacked the Danish container ship “Maersk Hangzhou”.
If ships on their way from the Far East to Europe do not go through the Suez Canal, they have to bypass the entire African continent. This extends the trip by more than seven days and approximately 3.500 nautical miles, or 6.482 kilometers.
The Suez Canal, which connects the Red and Mediterranean seas, is the shortest sea route between Europe and Asia. Typically, about 12 percent of global shipping traffic passes through this waterway.
Experts warn that the attacks of the rebel Houthis have already significantly increased the cost of transporting goods. And if the crisis drags on, the end consumers will also feel the increase in prices.
“For example, if on the way from Shanghai to Rotterdam and back a ship diverts to a route via the Cape of Good Hope, that increases fuel costs alone by up to a million dollars,” said Peter Sand, chief analyst at Copenhagen-based market analysis company Xenet.
About nine percent of all oil and gas tankers pass through the Red Sea, some of which have already been targeted by Houthi rebels. United Kingdom (UK) oil company BP has been one of those avoiding this route since December 18th.
“We’re seeing here and now that energy supplies, whether it’s oil, coal or gas, are affected, simply because of the winter in the Northern Hemisphere,” analyst Sand said. This could have a domino effect on energy prices, Biznis Info writes.
E.Dz.
