An oil tanker that suffered engine failure in Egypt's Suez Canal has been towed away after it briefly disrupted traffic in the vital waterway, the canal's authority said on Sunday.
The news agency Reuters reports that the canal authority's head, Osama Rabie, said that traffic in both directions had resumed as normal after tugboats managed to move the stranded tanker.
The Malta-flagged crude tanker called SEAVIGOUR was built in 2016, according to Refinitiv Eikon shipping data.
It was heading from Russia to China when it stalled in the canal, authorities added.
Frequent traffic disruptions occur in the Suez Canal due to technical malfunctions, but stoppages are usually brief.
Less than two weeks ago, tugboats had to move a bulk carrier that had been stranded for several hours in the canal.
In 2021, a 400-meter-long container vessel, MV Ever Given, was finally freed six days after it completely blocked Egypt’s Suez Canal.
The total trade loss from shipping companies was estimated at roughly $54 billion.
The blockage had caused disruptions in the delivery of over $9 billion worth of goods each day, which is equivalent to $400 million worth of trade per hour.
