Yesterday I cited the press release of the Norwegian shipping company Odfjell, which no longer will send their tankers through the Suez Canal, but take the long route around Africa instead, hoping to avoid being hijacked by pirates. Maybe just in the nick of time.
Shipping companies are now seriously considering avoiding the Suez Canal and take the long route around Africa instead. One Norwegian shipping company, Odfjell, has already started sending their tankers on the long route.
Shipping companies are now seriously considering avoiding the Suez Canal and take the long route around Africa instead. The Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet reports that such move could endanger this year’s Christmas, with presumed presents not arriving on time to be sold from stores.
The BBC news this morning ran an interesting and worrying story: Shipping companies are considering to avoid The Somali coast and Suez canal on their way to Europe and rather take the long route around Africa. That will make for an extra lead time of 3-4 weeks, but this could mean a temporary supply chain disruption for Europe, while the new lead times settle in.
You may not consider it the foremost supply chain risk, but piracy can endanger civilians, can disrupt the economy, can encourage corruption, and could trigger an environmental disaster.
