The French oil giant TotalEnergies announced today, Wednesday, that it "has not sent ships through the Bab al-Mandab Strait leading to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal for several weeks, which increases the time it takes for its vessels to sail to Europe." Ship traffic through the Bab al-Mandab Strait, located at the southern end of the Red Sea, has been disrupted due to Houthi attacks on commercial vessels, resulting in rising shipping costs.
TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanné stated, "The costs of passing through the Red Sea have increased, attributed to reasons including rising insurance costs." He added, "The conflict between the Houthis and the U.S.-led coalition significantly affects the region. Therefore, we are exercising caution and no longer traverse the Red Sea." Pouyanné noted that "it now takes four days for the complete journey compared to passing through the Red Sea for a liquefied natural gas tanker."
The International Energy Agency stated today that "delays in the delivery of petroleum products due to rerouting ships to avoid attacks in the Red Sea particularly impact product markets in Europe." Since mid-November, the Houthis have been targeting commercial vessels in the Red Sea with drones and missiles, causing disruption to international trade and forcing some ships to change their routes to instead sail around the southern tip of Africa.
