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Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd will continue to reroute their vessels around Africa’s southern Cape of Good Hope
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This follows a December 30 incident involving the Maersk Hangzhou which Houthi militants tried to board
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In a January 2 advisory, Maersk said it will “continue to pause all cargo movement through the area while we further assess the constantly evolving situation”
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Hapag-Lloyd will reroute its vessels around the Cape of Good Hope until January 9
Shipping lines Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd will continue to reroute their vessels around Africa’s southern Cape of Good Hope, skipping the Red Sea route as a result of weekend attacks on a Maersk containership.
In a January 2 advisory, Maersk said it will “continue to pause all cargo movement through the area while we further assess the constantly evolving situation.”
It added: “In cases where it makes most sense for our customers, vessels will be rerouted and continue their journey around the Cape of Good Hope.”
Maersk on Sunday initially suspended for 48 hours all transits through the Red Sea/Gulf of Aden. This followed a December 30 incident involving the Maersk Hangzhou which Houthi militants tried to board. The action was thwarted by US military helicopters, killing 10 of the attackers. An investigation into the incident is ongoing.
The rerouting means extra shipping charges imposed by some carriers to cover longer voyages around Africa.
Hapag-Lloyd, on the other hand, said the re-routing will continue until January 9.
Maersk Hangzhou was among the first vessels to go through the Red Sea again following confirmation that the multinational security initiative, Operation Prosperity Guardian (OPG), had been deployed in the area.
Maersk on December 24 said it was preparing to allow for vessels to resume transit through the Red Sea after it received confirmation that the OPG has been set up and deployed to allow maritime commerce to pass through the Red Sea/Gulf of Aden and once again return to using the Suez Canal as a gateway between Asia and Europe.
OPG is a US-led military coalition formed in December 2023 to respond to Houthi-led attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea. It includes the US, United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles, and Spain.
Yemen’s Houthi militant group began targeting vessels going to or coming from Israel earlier in December, disrupting global trade. The attacks are in protest of Israel’s offensive against the Palestinians in Gaza.
