After a wave of toll hikes since late 2021, the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) has changed course when it comes to tankers, announcing its second set of rebates in three weeks.
TradeWinds already reported on 22 June about the SCA bringing in fixed rebates of between 15% and 75% for product, chemical and liquid bulk carriers.
In an announcement on Monday, the authority said it was extending toll rebates to ballast or laden crude tankers as well.
According to an updated circular, crude carriers’ normal Suez Canal tolls will be reduced by 20% if they operate between ports in the US Gulf or the Caribbean, and the Middle East Gulf between Sur, Oman, and up to — but not including — Karachi, Pakistan.
The rebate rises to 25% for tankers operating between the same American ports and any terminals between Karachi and Cochin in western India.
The rebate rises to 75% for travel between the US Gulf and the Caribbean, and any Asian port east of Cochin. That includes terminals in Indochina, China, Japan and all the way up to Russia’s Pacific coast.
The 75% reduction also applies to any ballasting or laden crude tankers on the move between any port on the eastern coast of South America south of San Andres island, Colombia and any Asian port east of Karachi.
All rebates apply to vessels that started sailing from their port of origin since 1 July.
The authority justified its move as a step to “further enhancing the mutual benefits of both the SCA and its clients, as well as to promote transits via the Suez Canal”.
Earlier this year, it announced an additional surcharge of 10 percentage points applying to crude oil and product carriers from 1 April.
Immediately before that rise, the SCA reported record monthly income of about $800m for January, during which an unprecedented 677 tankers carrying a record 34.5m tonnes of crude and oil products sailed through the canal.
Last month, the SCA announced similar rebates for bulkers. It also introduced a fixed rebate of between 10% and 35% for LNG carriers sailing from the US east coast to India, while rebates for other LNG carrier voyages have been increased.
