From the Suez to Around The Cape: Port Congestion, Delays and Its Consequences

Global Trade Rerouted – And African Ports Under Strain

The heightened security risk environment following the Houthi attacks on
commercial shipping in the Red Sea in 2023 had seen shipping lines divert
vessels from the Suez route to the Cape route. With renewed hostilities in the
Middle East, traffic has been once again disrupted the slowly recovering Strait
of Hormuz, Suez Canal and Bab el-Mandab Strait.

The Cape route is now solidifying as the default option for vessels, despite the
intensifying the pressure on unprepared African ports (Rodríguez & Sainz,
2026). Cape Town, the key anchor of this route, has seen a 112% surge in
vessels (Nozulela, 2026). How are African ports and shipping lines adapting to
an increasingly uncertain and unpredictable security environment and what are
the long-term solutions to resolve the congestion at these ports?

A Double-Edged Development:

Increased maritime traffic through ports automatically increases their revenue
but it also leads to foreign and domestic investment in the local infrastructure
(roads, railway, pipelines), new local jobs, the development of local industrial
and logistical hubs and the deepening of diplomatic relations with relevant
countries.

With the rerouting of commercial shipping from the Suez to the Cape, African
ports are reaping these benefits. However, these ports are not prepared to
handle this increased amount of traffic (Bassom, 2025).

Ports around Africa are suffering from congestion—Mombasa and Pointe-Noire
in particular—and vessels are unable to make port calls efficiently. This in turn

results in severe shipping delays, higher freight rates, higher demurrage
charges and congestion surcharges, as well as inflationary pressures on
consumers. The shift from Suez to the Cape has created an uneven distribution
across ports. This shift however was an emergency response to Houthi attacks
on shipping following the October 7th attacks, rather than a pre-planned
decision. Therefore, both the shipping lines and the ports were unprepared.

Many of these ports are not set up to handle this amount of traffic at this rate,
they do not have the trained manpower, facilities, cargo handling capacity,
efficient customs and border clearance processes or the necessary wider
infrastructure to manage the traffic. For example, there is a digital lag in many
of these ports. The cost of deploying new technology is high and most port
authorities simply do not have the necessary funds to modernize (Bhonsle,
2025). These inefficiencies have led to severe congestion around the larger
ports, with overflow being unevenly distributed among the smaller ports—
putting pressure on the entire system.

South Africa:

South Africa and its ports—primarily Cape Town and Durban—are most heavily
affected. South Africa is the key link along the Cape route for a number of
reasons:

Geographic Necessity – Only route between the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic.
Therefore, movement between Europe/ Americas and Asia, that is not through
the Pacific, must pass through South Africa.

Ship Servicing – Ships require maintenance, repairs, crew changes and
provisioning for journeys to be safe and economical. South Africa’s ports (Cape
Town, Durban and Gqeberha/ Ngqura) are the only option to serve as way
stations for vessels moving between Asia and Europe.

Bunkering (Refuelling) – The route around Africa adds about two weeks of
additional travel time, Cape Town is the essential bunkering stop for vessels—
replacing Fujairah (UAE).

While Durban and Gqeberha (Ngqura), are emerging as important hubs, Cape
Town is the most important port in South Africa. It can accommodate all
necessary services for container ships, oil/ chemical tankers, LNG ships, bulk
carriers and livestock carriers.

• Bunkering – It can accommodate most vessels and has a nearby refinery
  (Astron Energy Cape Town Refinery – Milnerton) supplying the necessary
  fuel
• Repair and Maintenance – The Sturrock (larger vessels) and the Robinson
  (smaller vessels) dry docks can accommodate the repair and maintenance
  of a range of vessels
• Crew Change – Long history of facilitating crew changes for ships on longer
  voyages, the Cape Town International Airport allows for this process to be
  very efficient

Even still, Cape Town has also felt the increased pressure, with vessels
experiencing waiting times of 6+ days, with some vessels delayed up to 10 days
before they can secure a berth. Some vessels have therefore been forced to
divert to other ports in an attempt to avoid the congestion at Cape Town, this
however has only put pressure on other ports. Durban (1-5 days) and Port
Louis (5-7 days) are beginning to experience similar delays.

Responses and Investments

Adaptation by the Ports and Shipping Lines

Ports are adapting by increasing and expanding their capacity as quickly as
possible. Cape Town is investing in the rapid upgrade of its landside operations
by upgrading its truck staging facilities and bunkering capacity to increase the
overall efficiency of the port (Pillay, 2025; ENCA, 2025). Cape Town is also
acquiring 28 new cranes and 7 ship-to-shore cranes with deliveries expected by
June 2026 (Freight News, 2025).

Additionally, overflow ports are also emerging as shipping lines redesign their
operations. Port Louis (Mauritius) has emerged as a key overflow transshipment hub for carriers who want to avoid the congestion is South
Africa.

Acceptance by the Shipping Lines:

As the waves of crisis in the Middle East become a somewhat permanent
feature, the Cape route is transforming from an emergency response by shipping lines like Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd, to a semi-
permanent reorganisation of global trade networks. The Cape route is now embedded into the operating strategies of the shipping lines (Rodríguez &
Sainz, 2026). The shipping lines are still, however, hoping that the operating
environment along the Suez route becomes safe again, Maersk has for example
stressed that the Cape route is still a “temporary adjustment” for the company
(Schuler, 2026).

Upgrades and Investments in Infrastructure:

The ports around Africa will see an inflow of capital aimed at upgrading
facilities to accommodate the increased traffic. Mauritius, for example, is
carrying out a digitization and an infrastructure modernization plan for Port
Louis (Kaori Media, 2026; ITA, 2026). Similarly, the port of Maputo
(Mozambique) is undergoing a $500 million investment to modernize terminals
to increase the capacity of the port (Ganic, 2025). The port of Dar es Salaam
(Tanzania) is undergoing a long-term development which began in 2017/18 and
is expected to develop the port so that it can handle 30+ million tonnes by
2030 (World Bank Group, 2022).

There are also similar upgrades and expansions already underway at a number
of African ports (Marks, 2025). This will take time however; many African ports
were in a state of disrepair even before the traffic increased and so it will take
time for them to be reconfigured and upgraded (Jacobs, 2025).

Conclusion:

The rerouting of global shipping from the Suez Canal to the Cape of Good Hope
began as an emergency workaround to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, but it has
evolved into a structural reconfiguration of the world’s most important trade
corridors—one that African ports were neither designed nor prepared for. The
port congestion, delays and cost pressures are the immediate symptoms of the
mismatch between the increased volume of traffic and the infrastructure
capacity that exists.

Until the Red Sea becomes reliably safe again, this state of affairs will persist. If
the African ports can modernise fast enough, they can cement a long-term
strategic advantage—providing a reliable and safe trade route for shipping
lines. If they cannot, the costs created by congestion will become permanent,
negatively affecting consumers and economies at the end of every delayed
supply chain.

Bibliography:

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