The Daily Update: Parking Ticket

Two weeks ago, the giant container ship Ever Given blocked the Suez Canal, taking days to be freed as the world looked on. Now it seems the 220,000 tonne, 400m long ship is once again stuck, however this time not because of a gust of wind! This time round it's due to a legal dispute between the ship's owners and the Egyptian authorities over not only the cost of the salvage operation, but also the lost transit fees for the week that the canal was blocked.

Earlier this week the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) declared that it had seized the huge ship and that it would not be allowed to move until its Japanese owners, Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd, pay the princely sum of USD900m in compensation. An Egyptian court has ruled that the SCA has a right to seize the vessel until it is paid.

Although you can’t block one of the world’s busiest sea routes for the best part of a week and not expect consequences, being asked to pay a parking ticket that comes in at the thick end of USD1bn does seem a bit steep.

However, Osama Rabie, chairman of the SCA seemed to be in no mood to compromise. ‘The vessel will remain here until investigations are complete and compensation is paid’ he said on Egyptian state television last week. ‘The minute they agree to compensation, the vessel will be allowed to move’.