The Suez Canal Authority has issued its first comprehensive toll adjustment in three years, raising vessel transit fees in the form of revised surcharges. This move, however, comes as the canal is still working to increase the number of transiting vessels and the shipping industry faces new risks.

According to the relevant circulars, surcharges levied on top of the base toll will be raised effective July 15. Although the Authority describes these surcharges as temporary, they represent substantial increases in transit costs for virtually all vessel categories. The only exemption from the new surcharges applies to passenger vessels, which represent one of the smallest categories of traffic using the canal.

The specific surcharge rates vary by vessel type, with crude and product tankers facing the steepest increases. Their surcharge will rise from the current 25% of the base toll: when laden, the surcharge rises to 37%; when in ballast, it increases to 27%. LPG carriers will face a 32% surcharge, dry bulk carriers 22%, and container ships 12%.

Previously, the Canal had recently introduced special measures aimed at attracting vessel transits, particularly targeting all container ships, whether laden or in ballast.

Speaking at a ceremony for the transit of CMA CGM's newest vessel, Suez Canal Authority Chairman Osama Rabie stated that in order to attract more vessels, the Canal has recently succeeded in raising the "level of service" it provides. He acknowledged that geopolitical challenges in the region have created new realities for the shipping market and supply chains. However, he continued to emphasise the significant advantages of a Suez Canal transit—shorter voyage distances and cost savings—compared with the alternative route around the Cape of Good Hope.

To highlight the return of large containerships, the Authority drew particular attention to the first transit of CMA CGM's new ultra-large containership, the CMA CGM Vendome. Built in 2025 and registered in Singapore, the 399-metre-long vessel with a capacity exceeding 24,000 TEU completed its transit on June 9.

The Suez Canal Authority reported that this was the first southbound transit on CMA CGM's FAL 3 service since January 2026. The company has been routing some of its larger vessels arriving from Asia through the Suez Canal.

In total, CMA CGM completed 104 transits through the Suez Canal in the first five months of 2026, carrying a combined 12.5 million tonnes of cargo. The French carrier has been at the forefront among major shipping lines in using the Suez Canal and the Red Sea since the outbreak of hostilities in the Persian Gulf region.

The Red Sea has become a critical alternative route for tankers loading at Saudi Arabia's western terminals as a substitute for the Persian Gulf. Meanwhile, some shipping lines are using the Suez Canal to send vessels to Saudi ports, which serve as part of a "land bridge" to move goods onward by road to Gulf countries.