Container traffic diversions around southern Africa to avoid attacks in the Red Sea drove up emissions in early 2025 by nearly one-fifth compared with a year earlier. But while ocean carriers have improved their fuel burning and ship utilization, recent attacks in the Red Sea have killed any hopes of a return to more fuel-efficient transits via the Suez Canal this year.
Greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in the first quarter rose 19.38% year over year to just under 60 million tons, according to VesselBot, a sustainable supply chain platform. In 2024, emissions jumped 45% on container trades tied to Europe compared with 2023, according to European Union data.
The southern Africa route for the Asia-Europe trade has been in operation since Houthi militants began targeting commercial shipping in late 2023. It is a 30% longer route than using the Suez Canal and adds 10-12 days to transits, absorbing up to 10% of global container shipping capacity and keeping rates elevated.
“In an era with high focus on reductions of carbon emissions, the impact of the Red Sea crisis on specifically container shipping has been an increase in emissions matching the total annual emissions of Cambodia,” Alan Murphy, CEO of Sea-Intelligence Maritime Analysis, wrote in his Sunday Spotlight.
“The responsibility for this substantial increase in carbon emissions is solely to be placed on the Houthis. The consequence of their actions has been to more than negate years of effort by the container lines to reduce the carbon emissions for container shipping,” he added.
Houthi militant attacks last week on two vessels within three days, leaving four seafarers dead and 11 unaccounted for, killed off any prospect of major ocean carriers returning to Suez Canal transits in 2025.
Source: Journal of Commerce
