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Saturday, May 02, 2026

The world's largest container carrier plans a new service linking Europe with isolated Middle East ports, using trucking across Saudi Arabia and smaller vessels in the Persian Gulf instead of transiting the blocked Strait of Hormuz.

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... MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co SA, in an advisory posted on Saturday, said the first sailing would be May 10 from Antwerp, in a loop that also includes stops in Germany, Italy, Lithuania and Spain. Ships will cross the Suez Canal into the Red Sea and visit two ports on the western coast of Saudi Arabia -- Jeddah and King Abdullah.

From there, the network uses trucks to reach Dammam on the peninsula's east coast, where feeder vessels would connect to maritime gateways, including in Abu Dhabi and Dubai's Jebel Ali. Both have large industrial zones with hundreds of multinational companies that rely on containerised cargo which used to freely move through Hormuz.

Traffic through the strait has been severely restricted since the US and Israel attacked Iran on Feb 28, with few signs that it's opening soon. That extended closure is forcing shipping lines to chart land-based alternatives that take longer, cost more and emit more carbon.

Ports just outside the strait, in Oman and on the eastern coast of the United Arab Emirates, are also seeing a surge of diverted containers requiring expanded trucking capacity.

Hapag-Lloyd AG, based in Hamburg, said in March it established ground transport routes across Saudi Arabia and Oman. Copenhagen-based AP Moller-Maersk A/S has also announced multi-modal "landbridge" solutions for cargo across the region. ...


#1 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-05-02 08:21 PM | Reply

I doubt if this will lower the price of the goods that formerly had been shipped through the Strait of Hormuz.

#2 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-05-02 08:44 PM | Reply

imo, that the world's largest container carrier seems to be re-routing their cargo around the Strait of Hormuz indicates that have concerns.


OK, that may be an understatement.

#3 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-05-02 11:01 PM | Reply

I doubt if this will lower the price of the goods

It won't but it could get things moving, albeit on a smaller scale.

#4 | Posted by REDIAL at 2026-05-02 11:11 PM | Reply

Avoiding the Strait of Hormuz is one thing. Exposure to Iranian kamikaze drones is another: iranprimer.usip.org(620%20miles)

#5 | Posted by Doc_Sarvis at 2026-05-03 05:45 AM | Reply

Almost forgot: Iranian missiles - understandingwar.org

Gosh, it's almost as if they put some thought into this.

#6 | Posted by Doc_Sarvis at 2026-05-03 05:49 AM | Reply

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