CAIRO — While the war in Ukraine is adversely affecting Egypt, it is a different story for the Suez Canal. It earned the most revenue in its history due to the influx of Western ships passing through it in search of oil and its derivatives.

The Suez Canal made its highest monthly revenue ever in April with $629 million. The canal's navigation had seen the transit of 1,929 ships that month, compared to 1,814 ships in April 2021 — a difference of 115 ships and a 6.3% increase. Also, 114.5 million net tons were carried throughout the canal — the largest monthly tonnage in the canal’s history, as the waterway authority stated May 1.

Osama Rabie, head of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA), told Al-Monitor in a written response that the Russia-Ukraine war caused the crude oil trade to change, resulting in an increase in oil tankers transiting the canal. “Due to the trend of reducing imports from Russia, northbound trade increased mainly as a result of a rise in European and Canadian imports from the Arab Gulf. Meanwhile, oil traffic heading south has increased due to Russia's tendency to export oil to Asia, far from Europe,” he said.

When it comes to liquefied natural gas (LNG), Rabie said that more gas now transits the Suez Canal heading north from the Arab Gulf region to Europe. "This trend is likely to continue," he added. Also, LNG tankers heading from Russia, the United States and North Africa to Asian countries have seen a “relative increase.”