Heavy!Maersk official announcement: Red Sea sailing resumes!
- Author:weiyun.com
- Source:weiyun.com
- Release Date:2026-01-16
On January 15, Maersk, the Danish shipping giant and the world’s second largest liner company, issued a statement on its official website that one of its routes will resume passing through the Red Sea and Suez Canal this month.
After months of sailing around the Cape of Good Hope, Maersk decided to realign the MECL route, which connects the Middle East, India and the east coast of the United States, to its original route through the Suez Canal.
This route is completely operated independently by Maersk
Not part of any shipping alliance network
This significantly shortens transportation time
Restored the most efficient shipping route for customers
This structural return will be kicked off by the Danish-flagged ship "Cornelia Maersk" with a capacity of 8,650TEU, which departed from Jebel Ali Port on January 15.
The "Maersk Detroit" will become the first eastbound ship to return through the Suez Canal on February 3.
The decision comes after two ships, the Maersk Sebarok and the Maersk Denver, conducted initial trials through the corridor and is part of Maersk’s plan to gradually resume east-west sailings in the Red Sea.
Maersk said it will continue to pay close attention to developments and have formulated contingency plans to prevent tensions from escalating again.If necessary, individual voyages or the entire MECL route will be restored to the longer Cape of Good Hope route.
Compared with the Cape of Good Hope route, the Suez Canal and the Red Sea Corridor provide the fastest and most fuel-efficient passage connecting the East and the West, with obvious advantages in terms of emission control and schedule reliability.
Shares in the Danish shipping group fell more than 5% on the news, reflecting the potential for downward pressure on rates as ships gradually return to the shorter Suez route.
After months of sailing around the Cape of Good Hope, Maersk decided to realign the MECL route, which connects the Middle East, India and the east coast of the United States, to its original route through the Suez Canal.
This route is completely operated independently by Maersk
Not part of any shipping alliance network
This significantly shortens transportation time
Restored the most efficient shipping route for customers
This structural return will be kicked off by the Danish-flagged ship "Cornelia Maersk" with a capacity of 8,650TEU, which departed from Jebel Ali Port on January 15.
The "Maersk Detroit" will become the first eastbound ship to return through the Suez Canal on February 3.
The decision comes after two ships, the Maersk Sebarok and the Maersk Denver, conducted initial trials through the corridor and is part of Maersk’s plan to gradually resume east-west sailings in the Red Sea.
Maersk said it will continue to pay close attention to developments and have formulated contingency plans to prevent tensions from escalating again.If necessary, individual voyages or the entire MECL route will be restored to the longer Cape of Good Hope route.
Compared with the Cape of Good Hope route, the Suez Canal and the Red Sea Corridor provide the fastest and most fuel-efficient passage connecting the East and the West, with obvious advantages in terms of emission control and schedule reliability.
Shares in the Danish shipping group fell more than 5% on the news, reflecting the potential for downward pressure on rates as ships gradually return to the shorter Suez route.