Admiral Ossama Rabiee, Chairman and Managing Director of the Suez Canal Authority, has announced the issuance of new navigational charts of the Canal after adding the updates of the southern sector development project, and their approval by the Egyptian Navy's Hydrographic Department (ENHD) and the British Admiralty, which is responsible for issuing electronic charts and navigational data of Egyptian ports and the Suez Canal.
H.E., the Chairman, emphasized that all necessary measures have been completed to ensure that the transiting vessels have acquired the new charts. Chambers of shipping have been notified, and the Canal’s charts have been amended in the Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS). Additionally, navigational updates for paper charts have been issued until the new issue of printed charts for vessels are issued.
H.E. has also stated that the new navigational charts include the 40-meter widening towards the eastern bank within the scope of the Canal’s widening project from km 132 to km 162 (Canal marking) and adding the new doubled part, 10 km in length, from km 122 to km 132 (Canal marking) at the Small Bitter Lakes area, with the navigational aids located on them which ensures navigation safety in the Canal.
Adm. Rabiee has confirmed the technical validity of both parts of the Southern Sector Development Project, and the readiness of the Canal duplication project in the Small Bitter Lakes area for actual operations after the completion of all technical and navigational procedures including the installation of navigational aids, and the completion of training works for the Authority’s pilots on safe transiting through the southern sector at the Suez Canal Maritime Training and Simulation Academy.
The Chairman of Suez Canal Authority has highlighted that the southern sector development project is considered a quantum leap that will contribute to enhancing the competitiveness of the Canal and attracting new classes of ships and marine units that have not transited through the Canal before. That is in addition to transiting safely and increasing the rates of navigational safety for unconventional transit operations.
Adm. Rabiee has also stressed the navigational and economic importance of the southern sector development project and its role in enhancing the Canal's leadership and raising its global classification with its multiple navigational advantages and most notably increasing the margin of navigational safety and reducing the impact of the pressure of the two banks of the Canal on vessels of a large draft after expanding the Canal 40 meters eastward, and increasing its depth from 66 feet to 72 feet within the Canal's expansion project. Moreover, the Canal’s doubling project increases the accommodation capacity of the Canal by 6 to 8 vessels on a daily basis and adding 10 kilometers to the length of the New Suez Canal; reaching 82 km instead of 72 km.
