Factbox: Shipping firms avoid Red Sea as Houthi attacks increase

Hoegh Autoliners ASA

21/12/2023 10:27

(Adds authorities' warnings in paragraph 3, section on Hoegh
Autoliners)
       Dec 21 (Reuters) - Iranian-backed Houthi militants in
Yemen have stepped up attacks on vessels in the Red Sea to show
their support for Palestinian Islamist group Hamas fighting
Israel in Gaza.
    The attacks, targeting a route that allows East-West trade,
especially of oil, to use the Suez Canal to save the time and
expense of circumnavigating Africa, have pushed some shipping
companies to reroute vessels.
    Maritime authorities and shipping ministries, including
those of Norway and Greece, also warned against sailing in the
area.
    Below are companies (in alphabetical order) that have
decided to pause shipping via the Red Sea:

    CMA CGM
    The French shipping group said on Dec. 18 it was rerouting
some vessels via the Cape of Good Hope, and had instructed all
its other container ships that were scheduled to pass through
the Red Sea to reach safe areas and pause their journey until
further notice.

    EURONAV  EUAV.BR  
    The Belgian oil tanker firm said on Dec. 18 it would avoid
the Red Sea area until further notice.

    EVERGREEN  2603.TW  
    The Taiwanese container shipping line said on Dec. 18 its
vessels on regional services to Red Sea ports would sail to safe
waters nearby and wait for further notification, while ships
scheduled to pass through the Red Sea would be rerouted around
the Cape of Good Hope. It also temporarily stopped accepting
Israeli cargo.

    FRONTLINE  FRO.OL  
    The Norway-based oil tanker group said on Dec. 18 that its
vessels would avoid passages through the Red Sea and the Gulf of
Aden.

    HAPAG-LLOYD  HLAG.DE  
    The German container shipping line said on Dec. 18 it would
reroute several ships via the Cape of Good Hope until the safety
of passage through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea could be
guaranteed.
    A projectile believed to be a drone struck its vessel on
Dec. 15, while sailing close to the coast of Yemen. No crew were
injured.

    HMM  011200.KS  
    The South Korean container shipper said on Dec. 19 it had
from Dec. 15 ordered its ships from Europe that would normally
use the Suez Canal to reroute via the Cape of Good Hope for an
indefinite period of time.

    HOEGH AUTOLINERS  HAUTO.OL 
    The Norwegian shipping company said on Dec. 20 it would stop
Red Sea transit after the Norwegian Maritime Authority raised
its alert for the southern part of the sea to the highest level.

    MAERSK  MAERSKb.CO 
    The Danish shipping company on Dec. 15 said it would pause
all shipments through the Red Sea until further notice,
following a "near-miss incident" involving its vessel. On Dec.
19, it said that vessels due to sail through the Red Sea and the
Gulf of Aden would be rerouted around the Cape of Good Hope.

    MSC
    Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) said on Dec. 16 its
ships would not transit through the Suez Canal, with some
already rerouted via the Cape of Good Hope, a day after two
ballistic missiles were fired at its vessel.

    OCEAN NETWORK EXPRESS
    Ocean Network Express (ONE), a joint venture of Japan's
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines  9104.T , Nippon Yusen  9101.T  and Kawasaki
Kisen Kaisha  9107.T , said on Dec. 19 it had decided to reroute
vessels away from the Suez Canal and the Red Sea. Instead, its
ships will navigate around the Cape of Good Hope or temporarily
pause their journey and move to safe areas.

    OOCL
    Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) has stopped cargo
acceptance to and from Israel until further notice, the shipping
company owned by Hong Kong-based Oriental Overseas
(International) Ltd  0316.HK  said on Dec. 16.

    WALLENIUS WILHELMSEN  WAWI.OL  
    The Norwegian shipping group said on Dec. 19 it would halt
Red Sea transits until further notice. Rerouting vessels via the
Cape of Good Hope will add 1-2 weeks to voyage durations, it
said.

    YANG MING MARINE TRANSPORT  2609.TW  
    The Taiwanese container shipping company said on Dec. 18 it
would divert ships sailing through the Red Sea and the Gulf of
Aden via the Cape of Good Hope for the next two weeks.

    <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Shipping industry in the dark over US-led Red Sea navy force   
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N3DF1JY
FACTBOX-How companies are responding to attacks on ships in the
Red Sea     urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N3DE22M
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
 (Compiled by Paolo Laudani, Izabela Niemiec and Jesus Calero in
Gdansk; editing by Milla Nissi)
 ((Paolo.Laudani@thomsonreuters.com;))