Suez Canal, Egypt
The Suez Canal, Egypt (30°42′18″N, 32°20′39″E) is one of the world's most important waterways and its Sumed Pipeline is considered a significant geographic oil transit chokepoints from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. The Suez Canal is west of the Sinai Peninsula and serves as a two-way water transport route between Europe and Asia. It is 190 km long and 300 meters wide. The canal supports approximately 8% of the world’s shipping traffic with almost fifty vessels traveling through the canal daily.
In 1967, the canal was closed due to the outbreak of the Six-Day War. At the time, Israel has taken over the Sinai Peninsula which resulted in the Suez Canal becoming a buffer zone between the forces of fighting. The Suez Canal was reclaimed by the Egyptians in the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and was reopened in 1975. Since its reopening, the canal has been widened twice.
The Suez Canal is considered a geographic “chokepoint” due to its influence in the world oil trade and because its narrow-width could be easily blocked, causing disruption to oil transport. In 2001, the Suez Canal transported approximately 1.3 million bbl/d of petroleum. The Sumed Pipeline has the ability to transport around 2.5 million bbl/d from the Ain Sukhna terminal at the Gulf of Suez to the Sidi Kerir at the Mediterranean Sea. Oil from the Sumed Pipeline is exported mainly to Europe and the United States. The pipeline consists of two parallel 42-inch lines and is owned by the Arab Petroleum Pipeline Company. By 2010, the Egyptian government hopes to have widened and deepened the Suez Canal enough to accommodate the passage of very large crude carriers (VLCCs) and ultra large crude carriers (ULCCs).
Further Reading
- Information on the Suez Canal (suezcanal.com)
- Karabell, Zachary. Parting the Desert: The Creation of the Suez Canal. Knopf, 2003.