Suez Canal Carries 61% of World's Oil Tankers, Says Osama Rabie

Chairman of Suez Canal Authority Osama Rabie revealed that 85% of the oil from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait is transported eastward and does not pass through the Suez Canal, explaining that the dry bulk carriers and containers hold the largest percentage of passage through the Canal with 61% of the oil tankers in the world passing through the Egyptian route.

Rabie added that the canal more than 18,000 ships pass annually through the canal, noting that 17,000 workers work for the authority.

He pointed during a call-in with TV anchor Lamees El Hadidy that there is no alternative route to the Suez Canal, saying the other route "Cape of Good hope" is long, lacks services and has security risks, and the Arctic shipping route has great dangers because of its Ice-rich nature.

He adding that the incentives provided last year led to an increase in ship traffic by 8% despite the coronavirus pandemic, stressing the importance of electronic information system in the  Suez Canal system.

"The electronic system of the authority is well protected, safe and difficult to penetrate, indicating that the authority is seeking to purchase tugboats with a strength ranging between 250 and 300 tons.

Since the Suez Canal opened, the Cape Route has been used when passage through Suez is refused, or by Capesize ships. In the 1904-05 Russo-Japanese War, the Dogger Bank incident forced the Russian fleet to sail around Africa.