Egypt has closed eight ports owing to bad weather, officials said on Monday.
The ports of Port Tawfiq, El-Zayteyat and Sharm El Sheikh were shut early Monday morning, the Red Sea Ports Authority said.
The ports of Adabiya, Ain Sokhna, Port Said West, Port Said East and Al Arish were also shut later on Monday, a statement from the General Authority for the Suez Canal Economic Zone said.
The ports are expected to re-open as soon as weather conditions improve, the statement added.
Meanwhile the Suez Canal recorded its highest ever revenue in November, pulling in $571.3 million, according to the head of the waterway’s ruling body.
Head of the Suez Canal Authority, Osama Rabie, said in a statement that the canal also achieved the largest monthly net tonnage with 113.5 million tonnes.
Rabe said the support of the political leadership had a great impact towards achieving the goals of the strategic vision for the development of the authority.
He added the authority is considering incentives for ships that run on liquefied natural gas, and discussing ways to use renewable energy in operating pilot stations and a number of marine units.
The Suez Canal is almost 200 kilometers long, and about 12 percent of global trade — including 1 million barrels of oil — pass through the waterway every day.
About 12% of global trade, around one million barrels of oil and roughly 8 percent of liquefied natural gas pass through the canal each day.
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