Suez Canal Transit Service

The idea of linking the Mediterranean and Red sea first occurred during the Pharahonic age.

The pharaohs dug the first canal linking both seas, the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, through the eastern branch of the Nile Delta. Later the canal was neglected until the Greeks, followed by the Romans, dug it several times but it again fell into neglect. The canal was dug once again at the time of the Arab conquest of Egypt. It continued to exist for many years but was later filled up.

During the French campaign of 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte thought of linking the two seas directly by means of a navigation canal, but engineers did not support the idea for believing that the Red Sea level was nine meters higher than that of the Mediterranean. On November 30, 1854 the French engineer Ferdinand de Lesseps managed to sign an agreement with the Egyptian government to dig the Suez Canal.

On April 25, 1859, the digging of the Canal began and continued for ten years. More than 2.4 million Egyptian workers were engaged in the operations, of which more than 125.000 lost their lives. On November 17, 1869, the Suez Canal was opened for navigation.

The Suez Canal has a strategic location. It links two oceans and two seas: the Atlantic and Mediterranean via Gibraltar to Port Said, and the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea via Bab Al Mandab and the Gulf of Suez to the port of Suez. It is the world's longest Canal that has no locks, and can be widened and deepened at any time when necessary. In July 1956, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal after it had been an international company for about 87 years.

The Suez Canal's strategic importance lies in the fact that it is essential for world trade. It transports 14% of the total world trade, 26% of oil exports, 41% of the total volume of goods and cargo that reach Arab Gulf ports. The Suez Canal shortens considerably the distance between East and West. For instance, 86% of the distance between the Saudi Port of Jeddah and the Black Sea port of Constanza is saved if compared to the route round the Cape of Good Hope. The distance between Tokyo (Japan) and Rotterdam (Netherlands) is shortened by 23%.

The Egyptian government has always been keen on improving and developing the performance of the Suez Canal in order to cope with the steady increase in maritime transport due to the huge capacity of tankers, giant cargo vessels and the ever-increasing number of ships crossing the Canal.

SAFINA takes over the day-to-day operations and boarding arrangements, on behalf of its principals, for vessels transiting the Canal from the initial ETA advice up to the vessel's exit and sailing from the Suez Canal.
In this capacity, SAFINA takes it on its responsibility:

• To ensure that vessels' transits are booked with the Suez Canal Authority and all operational arrangements are made in ample time prior to vessels' arrivals.

• To monitor closely the ETAs of our principals' vessels and maintain contact with Masters advising them of transit prospects as well as any other necessary information such as arrival instructions and convoy times.

• To arrange for representatives of the Suez Canal offices to closely liaise with Masters of the vessels upon arrival for transit, and to render any perceptible assistance to Masters.

• To ensure that any specific instructions requested by the Principal will be carried out, whenever possible.

• To advise principals on daily basis with vessels' positions in the Canal, i.e. arrival, entering, exiting times, together with figures for bunkers on board and any additional information that may be required.
  To follow up in case of any crew changes or air freighted consignments arriving at Cairo airport destined for the vessels. SAFINA dedicated employees – based at Cairo Airport - ensure prompt assistance to both crew personnel and air consignments.

• If a vessel requires supply of provisions, stores, fresh water, bunkers etc., SAFINA follows up such deliveries via its recognized local subcontractors.

• Upon receipt of nomination from the principal or upon receipt of the ETAs of the vessel for either Port Said or Suez, SAFINA sends the principal a breakdown of estimated transit funds required. The pro-forma funds are calculated using the prevailing SDR rate of the day, thus avoiding over-estimation.
• The amount should be remitted to SAFINA Egypt's bank account two working days prior to the arrival of the vessel at Suez Canal.
• SAFINA Egypt offices are electronically linked to the company's bank. Immediately after receipt of the funds, they are automatically utilized to make the necessary arrangements with the SCA, ensuring smooth transit.
• SAFINA collects and carefully checks all vouchers and invoices, and prepares the disbursement accounts for each vessel prior to dispatch to the principal via courier.
• SAFINA covers each disbursement account by a separate invoice in US dollars.
• Depending on the number of transits, SAFINA dispatches a monthly statement of account listing all invoices and advances drawn for completed transits and arrive at the monthly net balance due either way. Settlements are arranged through the agreed banks.

Joiners:

The following information is required prior to arrival:

• Personal Details: Name, Rank, Nationality, Date of Birth, Passport number and Seaman's book number.
• Full flight details including any connecting flight(s).
• Copy of passport prior to arrival to be faxed to SAFINA EGYPT (Suez Canal Dept.)

The following documents are required upon arrival:

• Valid seaman's book.
• An introductory letter from the owners stating vessel's name, the port ship arrives and the Canal agent's name.
• Contract of employment.
• Officers should also carry their license of competency.

Entry Visa to Egypt:

Entry Visa may be granted upon arrival at Cairo Airport. However, for nationals of some countries, the Egyptian Authorities require securing a visa before arrival in Cairo. These countries are:

• India
• Pakistan
• Bangladesh
• Somalia
• Sri Lanka
• Turkey

Nationals of the above mentioned countries are expected to send data and information, including a copy of their passport and visa, to the agent 72 hours prior to arrival at Cairo Airport.

Off Signers

The following documents are required for off-signers:

• Personal Details "Name, Rank, Nationality, Date of Birth, Passport number and Seaman's book number".
• Full flight details including any connecting flight(s).
• PTA reference NOS.
• Ticket collection place.

Note: Please contact safina@safina-eg.com prior to any crew change.

General Instructions

All shipments must be consigned to:

Master of M/V (insert vessel name)
In transit. Final destination is Port Said/Suez.
C/O Safina Shipping Services Company (Egypt)
Cairo Head Office
4 Road 204 – Degla – Maadi - Helwan
Tel: +202 25196164 ( 10 Lines )
Fax: +202 25196197

Note: The abbreviation (SAFINA Egypt) is NOT accepted as consignee name. All AWBs (either airfreight AWBs or courier AWBs) and commercial invoices must indicate clearly the wording "In transit. Final destination is Port Said/Suez."

If this clause is missing for any reason, an urgent correction must be sent without any delay through the carrier.

Note: It is not sufficient for the commercial invoice only to bear the above wording. The AWB also must bear the same.

Shipments must be sent to SAFINA EGYPT at least 3 working days prior to the vessel's arrival, taking into consideration Fridays (a local holiday in Egypt) and official holidays.

Note: Official working hours at the Airport are 9.00 am to 2.00 pm Cairo Local Time. Working beyond these hours requires special arrangement and involves extra charges for night shift clearance.

A pre-alert must be sent to SAFINA EGYPT at Fax no +202 25196197 as soon as the spare is dispatched. This pre-alert must include:

• Flight details
• Copy of the AWB
• Copy of the commercial invoice

Note: Arrival notices from airlines/courier services may be delayed for many days and they sometimes are not received at all. It is not recommended to rely on them to provide notification.

The Commercial Invoice

• Please ensure that the original commercial invoice is enclosed in the docs pouch.
• Do not insert any items that are not listed in the invoice, so as to avoid any delays or Customs fines.

Note: In case of any discrepancy between the invoice included in the docs pouch and the invoice attached to the parcel, a Customs fine will be imposed by Customs authorities.
It is forbidden for any crew member to hand-carry any spare parts.
Suppliers must settle all freight amounts at the airport of origin (i.e. AWBs must arrive on freight prepaid basis

General Recommendations

• It is highly recommended that all shipments are forwarded to Cairo International Airport to ensure smooth clearance.
• Cairo Airport has more clearing facilities than Alexandria Airport and there are extra charges in Alexandria airport.
• It is recommended to consign the master AWB directly to Safina Shipping Services Company EGYPT directly (without the consolidator's agent).
• Receiving documents through forwarding companies always takes more time than expected and may hinder clearing operations.
• It is highly recommended not to use EMS courier service as difficulties are experienced in tracing/clearing such shipments.

Two hours before arrival at the Suez pilot station, vessels should contact the harbor office by VHF channel 14 in order to provide details of transit. The pilot boat can be contacted via VHF channel 14.

Northbound convoy commences at 0600 HRS LT at KM 160 and consists of two groups of vessels:
Group A - Group B

Vessels complete transit of the Canal in approximately 12 to 14 hours in the southbound convoy.

Fifteen miles before arrival at the fairway buoy, vessels should contact the harbor office via VHF channel 12 or 16 in order to provide full details of transit.