As international trade gradually resumes its regular flow through the Suez Canal, the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) said in a statement that the canal is ready to run at full capacity and welcome maritime services from major shipping lines. The declaration was made during a meeting between International Maritime Organization (IMO) secretary-general Arsenio Dominguez and SCA chairman Osama Rabie. They talked about the steps that needed to be taken in order to allow for the canal’s maritime traffic to resume.
Rabie clarified that the resumption of operations comes after the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab regions have stabilized, and that this development is consistent with initiatives to guarantee the seamless operation of international commerce routes. The summit emphasizes how the SCA and IMO continue to work together to facilitate the maritime industry’s recovery.
The Suez Canal had serious difficulties in recent months. The first quarter of the fiscal year 2024/2025 saw a 51 percent decrease in the number of vessels using the canal compared to the same period the year before due to Red Sea tensions that forced commerce routes to be rerouted. In Q1 FY 2024/2025, Suez Canal transit revenues also fell precipitously, from $2.4 billion in the same period the previous year to $931.2 million, a 61.2 percent decrease.
Revenues from Egypt’s Suez Canal fell to $4 billion in 2024, a 60.7 percent drop from $10.2 billion in 2023. Between 2023 and 2024, the number of ships passing through the canal decreased by around half, from 26,400 in 2023 to 13,200. Over the same time period, daily traffic decreased from 75–80 ships to 32–35 ships. According to Rabie, the CMA CGM shipping line has already started sending vessels to the canal as part of its EPIC service on the commerce route between South Asia and Europe, which began on January 23.
Rabie underlined that the SCA is dedicated to providing smooth marine services and is always changing to satisfy client demands by embracing the most recent developments in the shipping sector. He also emphasized the SCA’s stepped-up efforts to develop the canal’s southern part. These upgrades improve the canal’s ability to handle crises and add an extra layer of safety by expanding its capacity to hold six to eight vessels.
Rabie stated that the first quarter of 2025 would mark the start of the operational phase of the Suez Canal extension project in the Small Bitter Lakes. This will come when the Egyptian Navy’s Hydrographic Division finished updating its navigational charts, which now include a 10-kilometer extension of the twin canal from kilometers 122 to 132. Additionally, the Suez Canal is advancing environmental sustainability through its “Green Suez Canal” effort. Included in this effort are the creation of environmentally friendly vessels, the conversion of some vessels to run on biofuels, the use of clean energy at pilot stations along the canal, and the promotion of the sustainable and safe disposal of marine garbage.
