Omicron Ripping Through Cargo Ships May Exacerbate Shipping Woes
- Infections have been on the rise on vessels since January
- China’s tightened Covid-19 rules are adding to disruptions
Omicron is ripping through cargo ships, raising concerns that a surge in cases, coupled with China’s tightened quarantine requirements for vessels, could delay supply chain stabilization for the shipping industry.
Covid outbreaks are hitting ships globally, with cases increasing “exponentially,” said Francesco Gargiulo, CEO of the International Maritime Employers’ Council Ltd., which represents shipping companies. Anglo-Eastern Univan Group, which has an active crew of about 16,000, is seeing infections on five to seven vessels a month compared with only one or two a month last year, the company said. Meanwhile, Wilhelmsen Ship Management Ltd. has had infections on four of its ships since January after less than a dozen vessels were struck with Covid in all of 2021, said Carl Schou, chief executive officer at the ship manager.