The Ever Given, the massive cargo ship that accidentally charted a course resembling a penis before getting stuck in the Suez Canal, has been impounded.
Egyptian authorities, per a report from the Associated Press, announced the vessel’s impounding this week and explained that it was due to a financial disagreement with the owner.
“The vessel is now officially impounded,” Lt. Gen. Osama Rabie said. “They do not want to pay anything.” The Ever Given will not be cleared to leave the region until a payment amount is agreed upon with owner Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd.
While officials did not disclose exactly how much money was being requested by canal authorities, a judicial official was cited as saying the figure was “at least” $900 million. Others have also reported the same estimate. The Ever Given is owned by a Japanese firm, but operated by a Taiwanese shipper.
In case you somehow missed the riveting saga last month, the Ever Given’s state of stuckness saw one of the planet’s key trade routes blocked, leaving potentially billions of dollars in lieu. The vessel first entered Egypt’s Suez Canal from the Red Sea before running aground, resulting days later in the revelation that it had charted an arguably phallic course prior to its infamous stuckness:
More than 10 percent of global trade, including a sizable chunk of the world’s oil, typically passes through the Suez Canal.
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