Charterparty Details Are Key in an Era of Constrained Chokepoints

By The Maritime Executive 2026-10-13 18:32:46

Since the February 2026 commencement of the military operations in Iran, the issue of maritime shipping chokepoints has dominated headlines, with the focus on the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, linking the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea (respectively) to the Indian Ocean and global shipping lanes more broadly. Even before this, the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) initiated a broad-based fact-finding proceeding titled “Investigation Into Transit Constraints at International Maritime Chokepoints” focusing on seven key passages that have an outsized effect on global oceangoing trade: the Northern Sea Passage, the English Channel, the Malacca Strait, the Singapore Strait, the Strait of Gibraltar, the Panama Canal, and the Suez Canal. The FMC’s inquiry noted the 2021 grounding of the EVER GIVEN in the Suez Canal, which blocked that crucial maritime artery for six days, resulting in cascading backups for the following traffic.