Ever Given Saga Ends as Ship Departs Egyptian Waters

The Ever Given set sail from Egyptian waters on Tuesday, officially ending its 112-day saga stuck in the Suez Canal.

AIS ship tracking data from MarineTraffic.com shows the ship departed early Tuesday morning with a destination of Rotterdam. The ship is currently making about 11 knots as it sails across the Mediterranean Sea toward the Strait of Gibraltar.

The nearly 400-meter-long MV Ever Given grounded back on March 23 and became wedged across a southern portion of Suez Canal, blocking ship traffic through the critical waterway in both directions

The Suez Canal Authority said the ship was traveling too fast and lost steering during high winds and poor visibility, laying blame solely on the Ever Given’s Master despite the fact that the ship was traveling in a convoy and had two Suez pilots on board at the the time of the grounding.

It was nail-biter filled with uncertainty, but the Ever Given was successfully refloated after six days and moved to Great Bitter Lake, in the middle of the Suez Canal, where it remained under detention while the Egyptians and ship’s representatives negotiated for the release of the vessel.

After initially requesting nearly $1 billion in compensation, the Suez Canal Authority lowered its number to $550 million. Both sides announced an undisclosed settlement reached outside of the courts earlier this month for the Ever Given’s release.

On July 7, the ship finally raised its anchor and sailed to Port Said, on the northern end of the canal, for inspections prior to resuming its voyage today.

“We would like to take a moment to specially acknowledge the EVER GIVEN’s Master, officers and crew who played a vital role in the safe refloating of the vessel and in her maintenance over the last months,” said Shoei Kisen Kaisha, Ever Given’s Japanese owner. “We would further like to acknowledge the families of the crew who have faced the uncertainty of not knowing when their loved ones would return. We thank the crew of the EVER GIVEN; your hard work and professionalism exemplifies the very best of those who serve at sea.”