Euronav CEO Comments on Red Sea Disruptions

Euronav continues to halt shipments in the Red Sea region until vessels will be protected by the multinational Red Sea force, CEO of Euronav, Alexander Saverys said.

• “As long as don’t see the convoys that could protect our vessels, we will continue to avoid the area [Red Sea]”, Saverys said.
• “We are talking to our flag states about the security measures. Right now it is important to understand it is still allowed to go through the area, so what we are doing as a company is a voluntary decision but going forward we would obviously like to have a framework with our flag states to safeguard our vessels. It is “top top” urgency of a lot of people so I expect any news in the following days”, he added.
• If asked if he would describe this as a crisis point for trade flows, Saverys answered: “Most definitely, you can definitely compare this to the Ever Given situation [ in March 2021 ] so every week that transit through the area is difficult will have a big impact on trade flows and a big impact on freight rates because as you know we will have to sail around the Cape of Good Hope.”
• Depending on the sector the market will probably need an extra 5-10% of capacity to make sure that the trade still takes place to make up for longer voyages, but this capacity is not existing. The first consequence is that freight rates will go up and what you will be seeing in the next couple of weeks is that the supply chains will be distorted heavily, he added.