A ship carrying grain from Ukraine to China is being taken for inspection after its engine lost power in Egypt’s Suez Canal on Monday morning and briefly disrupted traffic in the vital waterway.
(Bloomberg) — A ship carrying grain from Ukraine to China is being taken for inspection after its engine lost power in Egypt’s Suez Canal on Monday morning and briefly disrupted traffic in the vital waterway.
A leak from a cooling component caused Glory, a bulk carrier, to lose propulsion, said Target Marine SA, the vessel’s operator. The ship didn’t run aground or touch the bottom of the canal, the Athens-based firm said. At least two port agents earlier said that it did.
The Suez Canal Authority said the ship was assisted by tugboat after a “sudden technical failure.”
Roughly 20 ships were stopped from travelling south through the canal, but resumed their voyages after minor delays, Leth Agencies, which provides services to vessels going through the Suez, said.
The Glory is designed to transport unpackaged commodity cargoes like grains. It’s just over half the length of the Ever Given, a massive container ship that blocked the Suez in 2021, roiling world trade.
The vessel collected almost 66,000 tons of corn from Ukraine in December and was heading to China, according to a document detailing cargoes shipped under the Black Sea Grain Initiative. The initiative enabled food exports from Ukraine to resume after they were disrupted by Russia’s invasion.
The Suez was blocked for almost a week in March 2021 when the 400-meter-long (1,312 feet) Ever Given got stuck lengthwise across the waterway, backing up marine traffic in both directions. The incident roiled global seaborne trade.
The Glory is 225 meters long, according to Target Marine. The canal itself is roughly 300 meters wide.
The cooling component on the Glory that leaked has been replaced and the ship’s main engine has been fully operational since 11:10 a.m. local time, Target Marine said, adding it was heading to an anchorage site for the inspection.
–With assistance from Salma El Wardany, Jack Wittels and Megan Durisin.
(Updates with comments from ship’s operator from second paragraph.)
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