EL7.AI
GeneralMedium•2 November 2026•
3 min read

Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd Return 4 Joint Container Services to the Suez Canal

Key Facts

1Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd announced the return of 4 joint container services through the Suez Canal on September 14, 2026.
2The first scheduled sailing for AE2 under the October changes is November 15, 2026, from Ningbo.
3The first scheduled sailing for AE11 is November 17, 2026, from Shanghai.
4Maersk set November 22, 2026, as the date for the first sailing of the new AE18 service from Shanghai.

Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd announced on September 14 the return of four additional joint container services through the Suez Canal, expanding the return of some shipping lines to the route after Red Sea disruptions. The services are AE5, AE11, AE12 and ME2, according to a Maersk statement. This announcement differs from a claim that an additional service resumed on November 2; the information available here does not establish that a new resumption took place on that date. Maersk’s sailing dates reported in October concern Gemini network changes and its service schedule, and do not by themselves mean that a new service resumed on November 2. The September announcement places the return to the Suez Canal among gradual operational changes, rather than showing that the entire network has returned to the Red Sea.

Maersk announced changes to the Gemini network on October 19 following the rerouting of Asia–Mediterranean services through the Suez Canal, including the introduction of the new AE18 service. The company set initial sailing dates for several services in November, including AE2 from Ningbo on November 15 aboard the Moscow Maersk. The schedule included an AE11 sailing from Shanghai on November 17 aboard the Estelle Maersk, followed by AE19 from Xingang on November 18 aboard the Annie Maersk. The new AE18 service was scheduled for its first sailing on November 22 from Shanghai aboard the Maersk Edirne. These dates describe scheduled operations under the changes and do not confirm that the sailings took place or that the service resumed on November 2.

The return remains subject to regional security considerations. Maersk said any changes to Gemini services would continue to depend on sustained stability in the Red Sea region and the absence of an escalation in conflicts there. In a separate update, Hapag-Lloyd said its initial transits through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait had proceeded as planned, but added that "every transit remains subject to a comprehensive security review and is conducted under naval protection." The company said those transits did not mean its entire network had returned to the Red Sea. This shows that the announcement of the return of specific services does not remove security assessments for each voyage or settle the route of the remaining services.

Previous moves show that return decisions can change as conditions evolve. In January, Maersk described the rerouting of its MECL service back to the Suez route as the first structural change to return a service to that route, linking the decision to improved stability in the Red Sea. But on March 1, the company temporarily suspended future transits through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait for its ME11 and MECL services and rerouted their voyages around the Cape of Good Hope until further notice, following a deterioration in the security situation. Maersk said at the time that the rerouting covered all sailings of the two services. Its January announcement also said it had contingency plans that could require rerouting MECL voyages again if the security situation deteriorated. The November sailing dates remain the next operational step cited in the update, while any subsequent changes remain tied to regional stability.