Antipollution Egypt racks up first 1,000 vessels to use Suez Canal waste service
- New service is part of Egypt’s ‘green canal’ project
- Venture is partnership between Suez Canal Authority and Greece’s V Group
- Average service so far has taken just 26 minutes per vessel, says company
Milestone is reached in just over 50 full days of operation
EGYPT’s new waste collection and management service for the Suez Canal, which is part of the country’s ‘Green Canal 2030’ scheme, has already supplied its services to 1,000 vessels.
Egyptian-Greek joint venture Antipollution Egypt only launched its service in mid-May this year and it has reached the milestone in just 53 days of uninterrupted operations.
The 1,000th vessel serviced was Greek-owned and crossed the canal on July 5, 2025.
The number of vessels serviced represented 58% of traffic transiting the waterway over the period — a rate deemed high for a newly introduced service.
The Suez Canal Authority has introduced a mandatory environmental fee for all vessels using the canal, although companies are free to decide whether they physically avail themselves of the service.
Antipollution said it has serviced a wide array of vessel types so far, including 213 bulkers, 110 general cargoships, 116 container vessels, 324 crude oil tankers, 175 product tankers, 17 ro-ros, and others.
The tally is equivalent to an average of 19 vessels per day — and the average service time per vessel was an “impressive” 26 minutes, the company added.
“This milestone is not merely a numerical achievement,” said Vyron Vasileiadis, chairman of V Group, the Greek shareholder in Antipollution Egypt.
“It represents the establishment of a new global standard for sustainable maritime waste management,” he said.
Among the largest vessels serviced so far have been the CMA CGM trio of 15,000 teu containerships: CMA CGM Adonis (IMO: 9882528), CMA CGM Osiris (IMO: 9882504)and CMA CGM Hermes (IMO: 9882499).
The cruise ship Aroya (IMO: 9733117)was one of two passenger vessels to use the service in its initial weeks of operation.
Antipollution has been collecting solid waste from ships using its own barges and barges from certified contractors, as well as half a dozen support vessels, including its purpose-built mother ship, Eco Suez I (IMO: 1100211).
The service will be expanded to include collection of liquid waste from transiting vessels, the company said.
