Egypt completes trial run of new Suez Canal channel extension

Egypt said on Saturday that it had successfully tested a new 10 kilometre channel near the southern end of the Suez Canal, even as its revenue from the waterway has plunged since Yemen’s Houthis began attacking vessels in the Red Sea linked to Israel, Reuters has reported. The attacks are said to be in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza.

The Suez Canal Authority said that during a trial run two ships passed through a new stretch of the canal’s two-way section without incident.

Following the 2021 grounding of the huge container ship Ever Given that blocked the vital waterway for six days, Egypt accelerated plans to extend the second channel in the southern reaches of the canal and widen the existing channel.

Its revenue from the waterway, the gateway to the shortest maritime route between Europe and Asia, has nevertheless tumbled since the Houthi attacks began post-7 October 2023.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi said on Thursday that due to “regional challenges”, the country had lost approximately $7 billion in Suez Canal revenue in 2024, marking a more than 60 per cent drop from 2023.

According to the canal authority, the latest expansion extends the total length of the canal’s two-way section from 72 to 82km. The canal is 193km long in total.

“This expansion will boost the canal’s capacity by an additional 6 to 8 ships daily and enhance its ability to handle potential emergencies,” explained the authority.

Earlier this year, Egypt said that it was considering an additional expansion project separate to the 10km channel extension.

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