The inauguration on Thursday of the New Suez Canal has been lauded by leading line CMA CGM as a major step forward for world trade.
"The New Suez Canal will double the transit capacity by 2023 and enable a more rapid and fluid sailing for the CMA CGM Group's vessels,"said the line.
After it is officially opened by the President of Egypt Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi on 6 August, the expanded Canal with a new 70 km section called the Suez Canal Axis will accommodate vessels of up to 24 metres draught, increase daily capacity and reduce transit times, according to the Suez Canal Authority.
This should see the number of vessels steaming through the Canal almost double from an average 49 vessels transiting daily today, to 97 in 2023 as lines bump up capacity to benefit from decreased northbound transit times and shorter waiting times.
"CMA CGM is the third [largest] shipping group in the world, a key partner to the Suez Canal and a major player for the world commercial exchanges," said Nicolas Sartini, CMA CGM Group Senior Vice President Asia to Europe trades. "The New Suez Canal finalization is a major event for us. Our vessels use that strategic route serving the world's main markets each day.
"Traffic through the canal being more fluid and transit times shortened, our Group will improve its clients' offer and its service reliability".
CMA CGM vessels sailed through the Canal 637 times in 2014 and 11 of the Group's services use the Canal regularly.
The original Suez Canal opened in 1869 and took ten years to build. Egypt completed the expansion in just 12 months under strict orders from President Al-Sisi's administration. It views the project as critical to kick-starting Egypt's economy which has struggled since the riots that led to the fall offormer President Hosni Mubarak in 2011.
Canal revenues from transit traffic will help the current regime, but it is also hoped that a major new logistics and industrial hub which includes ports being built alongside the Canal will enable Egypt to create more jobs and move its economy up the manufacturing value chain.