News / The challenges for containerships braving the waters around the Cape

Cape of Good Hope © Pitchi

Sailing around the Cape of Good Hope was regarded as foolhardy in the days of tall ships and wooden hulls. But even for the sophisticated vessels of today, there are dangers.

Two recent high-profile container-loss incidents – the CMA CGM Benjamin Franklin lost 44 boxes with damage to another 30 in July, and 99 containers were lost this month from CMA CGM Belem – have reduced confidence in the suitability of massive containerships for tougher ocean conditions.

And it could have been much worse: a bulk carrier, Ultra Galaxy, was caught in another of South Africa’s late-winter storms, capsized and broke-up off Cape Town.

“The southern hemisphere is at the end of winter, heading into spring,” explained Mike Yarwood, MD of loss prevention at TT Club, who is investigating the Cape environs, with the help of colleagues in Durban.

He told The Loadstar: “I am trying to rationalise whether that means that the most high-risk period of the year has passed, or is passing now, or whether they expect a deterioration through their spring and summer months.”

One of the major contributing factors to the dangers around the Cape is ‘parametric rolling’, which occurs when the wavelength of the ocean’s surface matches the rolling motion of the vessel, gradually increasing the angle of each roll with every wave impact.

The stresses of heavy rolling can cause stacks of containers to buckle, damaging those lower in the stacks and causing those near the top to careen overboard.

To help avoid this, shipping lines plan to try to place heavier containers at the bottom of stacks, but as TT Club points out, studies have identified an alarming discrepancy, of around 20%, between stowage plans and actual stowage.

Vessels have also re-routed away from heavy seas, which has in the past been facilitated by Suez Canal and Red Sea transits. But with these waters compromised by Houthi attacks, shipping lines have had to brave the Cape of Good Hope instead.

And shipping will not escape the amplification of ocean condition changes based on climate change, either. A recent study by the Environmental Defence Fund found shipping’s climate-based annual costs could increase from $3bn today to some $7.5bn by 2050.

“Ships will never be able to avoid the impact of heavy seas entirely,” said TT Club’s Peregrine Storrs-Fox. “Consequently TT, in furtherance of its mission to make the global logistics industry safer, more secure and more sustainable, continues with its efforts on this issue and urges industry colleagues to do likewise.”